Hooded
by Crystal Anjel
Summary: Sakura goes undercover at an all boy's school to solve a murder case. To make matters worse, Syaoran and Eriol attend the school, too, and they don't keep to themselves. S&S, complete, being revised.
1. Prolouge

Disclaimer: I don't own CCS, you don't own CSS, and if I did I wouldn't be writing this.  
  
C-Mage's Note: Wrote this with the right side of my mouth being numb from an impromptu tooth pulling and a huge gaping hole in my mouth. At least I get to eat pudding, applesauce, and ice-cream for a day. ^.^ This is my first collaboration with anyone, so I hope you all like it.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Hooded: Prolouge  
  
By Crystal Mage and Tiny Anjel  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A slight figure moved swiftly out from a dark alleyway, glancing sharply in all directions. No one was around; good. The figure ran across the adjacent street and pressed itself into the bricks of a corner of a tall building. The laying of the bricks left plenty of room for foot- and hand-rests. All the easier to reach the destination, a window on the second floor of the building. The figure gazed up to measure the distance to the window and promptly started climbing up to it, fingers and toes nimbly digging into the crumbling mortar to propel the figure up the wall, soft leather gloves and hose masking any foot- or hand-prints.  
  
Finally the figure reached the window, open a fragment to let in some of the cool spring air, and slowly pulled it open, careful not to make the barest sound, and crouched in the sill. Then, upon discovering a layer of screening blocking the way, the figure reached down and softly pulled a small dagger out of a padded sheath on its waist. With a few, quick strokes, the screen was in pieces at the figure's feet and the figure darted into the room before it, eyes scanning for a large, tell-tale piece of furniture that would belie where the bed was. Its eyes suddenly alit on the structure in the opposite corner, and the figure, blending perfectly into the surrounding shadows, sprinted over to the side of the bed. The figure looked down and made out the face of a teenage boy and its ears listened for the slow, rhythmic breathing of one who's deeply asleep. It quietly re-sheathed its dagger safely by its waist. Replacing the dagger's position in the figure's hand was a long, strong length of wire. If anyone were to see the figure's eyes of crazed desires, they would already know the intentions of the person. But the shadow-covered face only allowed its shoulders to heave heavily as it breathed in a louder and steadier beat than before. Its hands began to sweat in its gloves. Savoring every moment of the kill, the figure managed to loosely wrap the wire around the sleeping boy's neck. The wire criss-crossed only once where the boy's adam's apple lay, moving with his breathing. With a quick swipe of both arms moving in opposite directions, blood sprayed. It stained the front of the figure's clothes, soaked the bed and pillow in a metallic smelling red. The detached head looked peaceful as it rolled off of the bed and onto the floor. Giving a last smirk at it's finished job, the figure hurried out of the room and scaled down the wall, dashing back across to the alley.  
  
When the figure had reached the safety of the darkness of the encompassing walls it wiped the wire clean on a cloth from a pocket, which it threw into a pile of refuse, and then tucked it into its pocket, still silent. Then, after finishing its tasks, the figure reached up and pulled the hood of its jacket down, revealing a pale, gaunt face, with eyes like black holes, seemingly endless in their misery. Then, finally, the figure spoke, in a soft, cracked, barely female voice.  
  
"Two down, five to go." And then the figure swiftly ran farther into the alley and its accompanying shadows, disappearing as neatly as it had appeared.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
C-Mage: How'd you like it? Re-using "the figure" got annoying after a while. Ugh. My first attempt at writing suspense. Hope it didn't suck too much. The number thing will explain itself, I promise. The death scene was written by Tiny Anjel, as mine was wussy. ^_^;;; Please leave reviews, good or bad, and you can e-mail me (Crystal Mage) at cmage_88@yahoo.com, and Tiny Anjel at tinee_angelis@hotmail.com with comments and criticisms. Or you could just e-mail it to Crystal_anjel@yahoo.com.  
  
T.Anjel: I don't think it was all that bad!...... We could love reviews! Yes yes. I love reviews. They burst my ego to about.........one.... 


	2. Going Undercover

Yay! It's the first chapter! This whole co-fic thing is so fun. Sakura is a bit OOC, but for a good cause! I assure you. And I, personally, do not know anything about how police forces work, so bear with me. And if you flame about it, which would be funny if you do, my reply would be that it is fictional and what I want is what I get!  
  
C-Mage: You're so spoiled.  
T. Anjel: That's what you think! But I know better.  
C-Mage: Okay....  
T. Anjel: Don't be giving me that look.  
C-Mage: What look? ::looks innocently at T. Anjel::  
T. Anjel: You look at me as if I were insane.  
C-Mage: Don't deny it.  
T. Anjel: Shush it, you.  
C-Mage: You do know that you're just stalling everyone from reading this   
glorious fic? ::shoves T. Anjel off of the page::  
C-Mage's comments: She did forget to say that we don't own CCS, by the way. Which we don't. All flames will be appreciated so that I can laugh. ^.^ Have fun reading it!  
Title: Hooded  
By: Crystal Mage and Tiny Anjel  
Summary: Sakura goes undercover at an all boys school to solve a murder   
case. Syaoran attends the school along with his pestering friend Eriol.   
Can't/won't say more. Mwahahaha.  
  
Hooded- Chapter 1-  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
She was a child. Small and frail. Her eyes were large and innocent, radiating only the purest thoughts. Her light auburn hair barely reached her shoulders. But there was that one day which had changed her life forever. That one moment which caused her grief and pain. She was back from kindergarten that day. In her hand was a picture of a colorful butterfly which she had colored with pride an hour ago.  
  
"Okaa-chan!" the girl screamed happily into her house as she entered it.  
  
There came no reply.  
  
"Hoe?" The child, still gripping her work, scuttled about the house, looking for her mother who had always greeted the child with open arms at the door. The light bounce in her steps quickly vanished when she came upon the kitchen. Her innocence was stained with the picture of her mother. Dead. The scene was bloody and unforgiving. In Nadeshiko's hand there was a butcher's knife. She had tried to fend someone off. Blood stained the white tiles of the kitchen, overpowering the pure color.  
  
The butterfly picture drifted out of the girl's hand, to no avail at flying away. "Okaa...OKAA?!" the girl cried out, slipping over the thick blood and kneeling by her mother's body. The cry for her mother never ceased. Her mother's blood covered the child from head to foot as she tried to shake her mother awake. She's so cold, the child thought. Okaa....why are you so cold....  
  
Her brother arrived home thirty minutes after the child had. He saw his younger sister, crouching over their mother's body. He called the police. Tears had filled his eyes and threatened to pour. But he wouldn't let them fall. Not in front of Sakura. He called to her and struggled to drag the child away. She continuously cried out for her mother. Her eyes were puffy, and tears stained her cheeks. Touya wanted to cry with her. But he would not be weak to Sakura. She needed him more than ever now.  
  
The police arrived and asked questions, none of which neither Touya nor Sakura could remember. Fujitaka was contacted, and he tried to keep as cool as possible. He worried most about his youngest child. The one who had looked up to her mother, and the one who had seen the grotesque image of her death. He knew deep in his heart that she would change drastically. He wished that she wouldn't.  
  
The body and blood was cleared. Sakura was changed and was free of blood on her skin and clothes. Her small figure had managed to reach the kitchen after many hesitations. On the floor was her picture. The picture of the colorful butterfly stained with Nadeshiko's blood. "Okaa...," she whimpered and turned the picture over. On the opposite side of the smiling butterfly was a sloppily scrawled message reading, 'Happy birthday, Okaa-chan'.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Kinomoto! Kinomoto!" Fingers snapped impatiently in front of a dazed face.  
  
"H...Hai!"  
  
"Kinomoto," an old man said, rubbing his temples, "you have to stay focused!"  
  
"Hai," Sakura replied, and listened to the kind, old man's lecture. After a minute of listening, Sakura allowed herself to daydream again. She immediately thought of how she had entered the police force just a few years ago.  
  
She hadn't technically entered the police force. They said she was too young.  
  
Years had past since Sakura had seen her mother, dead in the kitchen. The only thing Fujitaka or Touya would tell her was that the house was being robbed, and Nadeshiko had tried to stop them. The unbelievable death of her mother took its toll on Sakura. Her heart hardened. She matured quicker than any of her friends. No, Sakura didn't want to block people away from her, but she had to. She was afraid. No, terrified of getting close to anyone. Including her father and brother. She was afraid of losing them; she didn't want to. By fifth grade, Sakura had no friends and didn't want any. Her heart reached out and wanted to laugh with them and play with them, but her mind told her not to do it.  
  
Touya had coped with the death better than Sakura or Fujitaka. He felt he had the responsibility of Nadeshiko on him. He knew Sakura was pushing him away. He had no heart to call her a 'kaijuu'. He would try once in awhile to bring a teasing smile to her face, but she wouldn't reply to his joke. She would just nod her head as if 'kaijuu' was her name.  
  
Sakura, being Sakura, didn't want people to feel the pain she felt. The pain of loss. When she was thirteen Sakura had entered the police station, declaring sternly that she wanted to help. Most police officers laughed. Only two of them took her seriously. One had vaguely recognized her as the girl from the murder case years ago. His name was Tanoue Minoru. The other who took Sakura seriously from the start was a young woman by the name of Konishi Miyako. She gave the girl credit for bursting into the precinct and announcing that she wanted to work there, young as she was.  
  
Minoru and Miyako gave Sakura small, odd jobs to do here and there. She was too young to go on a chase or to investigate murder scenes, but Sakura always managed to sneak a peak at papers with extreme cases and solve them with ease.  
  
Touya and Fujitaka had not much of an agreement with Sakura's decision to hang about the police station, but let her do it. As long as she didn't get herself into any trouble, Sakura had been free from Touya's watchful stare.  
  
Years had passed now, and Sakura was sixteen. Touya, Fujitaka, and Sakura moved after the murder to Kyoto where Sakura attended a public high school. Sakura made sure not to make close friends, yet not to make any enemies either.  
  
"Kinomoto!"  
  
"...."  
  
"Kinomoto!"  
  
"H...hai!" Sakura said loudly in reply, sitting up in her chair.  
  
"Class is dismissed," said the old man from the front of the room.  
  
Sakura had just noticed that the classroom was empty and that she had been dozing off for the whole period. "Ah...sumimasen!" Sakura said, apologizing for her behavior.  
  
The teacher nodded in acceptance of the apology and dismissed her. Sakura grabbed her books in her arms and strode out of the room. School was over for the day, and Sakura stuffed her books in her backpack before leaving towards the police station. It was early spring, and the remaining winter's air stung her face. She was chilled and pink when she arrived at the police station. She received head nods and 'hello's' until she reached Minoru's desk.  
  
Minoru was getting old and felt that he should retire. He looked up when he felt a small shadow hover over him.  
  
"A new case, Minoru-san?"  
  
"Not sure," Minoru replied to Sakura, who was quickly skimming the paper that he held in his hands.  
  
"Minoru-san?!" someone called out from the other side of the building. "Call for you on line three."  
  
Minoru picked up his phone and pressed the small button which was labeled '3'. "Moshi moshi," he greeted into the phone. After a pause, Minoru got up from his chair. He quickly reached up to get his jacket and swung it over his broad shoulders. "Cover my desk, Sakura-san," he said quickly. "I'll be back as soon as I can."  
  
"What's wrong?" Sakura asked, as Minoru put his hat on his head.  
  
"My aunt's at the hospital. I think she has a stroke," Minoru replied and smiled grimly. "She's getting old. I never expected her to last this long."  
  
Without waiting for a reply, Minoru left the station. Sakura watched his retreating back until it disappeared behind closed doors. When it did, she flopped onto Minoru's comfortable chair. Without a moment's hesitation, Sakura began reading the file on Minoru's desk. Who knew how long she had been reading and putting things together, because when she looked up from the papers, the moon was glowing peacefully out the window.  
  
"Ah, Sakura-san. You're still here."  
  
Sakura looked away from the window and saw Minoru at his desk, looking down at her. "Hai," she replied.  
  
"Did you put anything together?" Minoru asked.  
  
"Just a bit," Sakura said, showing him a few papers. "Two murders. One week apart and both killed in the same fashion."  
  
"I think we already had that," Minoru said in a teasing voice.  
  
Sakura nodded, but continued. "This one does the job and gets it done. Manages to leave no footprints and is obviously careful. I don't think she's going to kill the next one in the same style...."  
  
"What makes you think it's a she and that she's going to kill again?" Minoru asked, interrupting.  
  
Sakura shrugged. "Just the style of how she kills tells me the killer's a female, and I could tell that there's a pattern going on. Both boys were in an all boys school in Tokyo and were on the soccer team. They were both generally good-looking and pretty popular in the school. She's doing this for some cause; not for money, though...."  
  
Sakura was cut off again by the sound of the phone ringing.  
  
"Moshi moshi?" Minoru said into the phone. His face stayed impassive throughout the whole phone call. Sakura stared intently at Minoru, wanting to know who was on the other line. Minoru said nothing to Sakura's eager face and set down the phone five minutes later.  
  
"Who was it?" Sakura asked, knowing it was someone or something important from the look of Minoru's face.  
  
"Tokyo's all boys school," Minoru said with raised eyebrows. "They want someone to keep watch of the school."  
  
Sakura rolled her eyes. "They don't need to watch the school, they just need to watch certain boys. Maybe the soccer team or the most popular ones."  
  
Minoru scratched his chin thoughtfully. "This may be an undercover case," he thought out loud. "We'll probably get more information from them, too. They barely said anything to us cops," Minoru said, chuckling. He quickly gestured for Sakura to get out of his seat. She did so, and leaned against his desk as he began to make phone calls.  
  
"Who's going to go undercover?" Sakura asked. She motioned to the working, full-grown men and women. "Surely one of them will disguise themselves as a fifteen year-old and attend a high school?"  
  
"Someone will go as a teacher...," Minoru replied and resumed his conversation with the principal of the school.  
  
"Who's willing to talk to teachers about their life?" Sakura asked, rolling her eyes. "Send me," she stated simply.  
  
Minoru stared at her as if she had just grown a couple more heads. "You? You're a girl."  
  
"It's called going 'undercover', ne?" Sakura said, a small smirk surfacing on her face.  
  
Minoru thought for a split second, then quickly shook his head. "No...no...you can't...."  
  
"Why not?!" Sakura argued, making sure to add a slight whine in her voice. "I'll be fine! Please! I've been here for three years and I do nothing! I only went on one chase! I'll solve it before anyone else gets killed! I won't let anyone else get killed!"  
  
Minoru didn't stop shaking his head. He didn't want Sakura to be put in any danger. He had promised it to Fujitaka. "You weren't supposed to go on that chase in the first place," Minoru said with a raised eyebrow. He was getting good at that. "Look, Sakura-san.... It's too dangerous for you."  
  
"I'd rather risk my life than have another boy killed," Sakura said with a stern voice. "I don't want another family to lose their child. They don't deserve it." Sakura bit her lower lip, averting her mind from her mother's dead image.  
  
"I don't know how you do it," Minoru said, shaking his head slightly in exhaustion and surrender. "I'm going to have one of our men go with you as a teacher. Just a precaution."  
  
Sakura let her rarely-seen smile shine through. "Arigato, Minoru-san."  
  
"Why don't I go?"  
  
Sakura turned around to see Miyako. "Miyako-san!" Sakura said.  
  
"I'll go with Sakura-san," Miyako said to Minoru. Minoru sighed. He felt like this was more of a game than a real crime.  
  
Sakura gave Miyako a small grin. Miyako was young, in her mid- to late-twenties. She had her soft, black hair tied in a tight ponytail, freeing her sharp, coal-black eyes from any distractions of her view.  
  
Minoru looked up from his desk at Sakura. "You do know that you're going to explain this to Fujitaka-san?"  
  
Sakura nodded in assurance. She quirked an eyebrow. "You do know that you've been putting the principal on hold for the past five minutes now?"  
  
"Ah!" Minoru quickly apologized into the phone and briefly explained how Sakura and Miyako were going to go undercover for them.  
  
"You better head off for home, Sakura-san," Miyako said. "It's late."  
  
Sakura nodded and headed out of the police station.  
  
"Matte!" Minoru called from his desk.  
  
Sakura turned around. "Hai?"  
  
"You're leaving for Tokyo tomorrow. I reserved train tickets for you and Miyako-san. You'll have an apartment room waiting for you there near the school," Minoru explained quickly. "We need you to both there as soon as possible. Come to the station at twelve sharp."  
  
Sakura nodded in acknowledgment and greeted everyone good-bye.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Nani?!"  
  
Sakura stared straight into Touya's eyes and averted them to Fujitaka's. "Please...," Sakura begged, her eyes pleading.  
  
Touya had automatically disagreed to having Sakura go to Tokyo on police business. Fujitaka, on the other hand, quickly pondered the idea. She hadn't opened up to anyone here, and she certainly was being non-Sakura-ish. Maybe this experience will open herself up to people. Just maybe. Who knows? Fujitaka was going to take the chance. "Have a safe trip," he said, with a small smile. "But make sure to call frequently."  
  
Sakura smiled, and gave her father and brother a hug. "Arigato gozaimasu."  
  
Fujitaka only stared solemnly at his daughter, solely being able to pray that his daughter's heart would soften, and that she would break out of this paranoia.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"You've already been enrolled in the school as Sonogi Karaku," Miyako informed Sakura as they entered the neat apartment, complete with furniture and miscellaneous objects.  
  
Sakura dropped her suitcase heavily on the floor and stretched out her muscles. She observed the room with a critical eye, only half listening to what Miyako was saying.  
  
"No one knows that you're undercover at the school besides me, you, and the principal. He agreed to keep his mouth shut."  
  
Sakura nodded in reply.  
  
"You start school tomorrow," Miyako said and handed Sakura a package which had lain neatly in front of the apartment door. "Books."  
  
Sakura sighed and took the books into her arms. "I guess we're starting immediately," she mumbled.  
  
Miyako grinned. "We never waste a minute."  
  
Sakura dragged her suitcase into a comfortable room with two four-poster beds. She plopped onto one of the pink covered beds, exhausted from the day's trip. Sleep overwhelmed her in a matter of seconds.  
  
"No time to lose," Miyako said cheerily, waking Sakura up. "Time for you to dress as men do."  
  
Sakura couldn't complain for more sleep, since she was the one who wanted to do the job in the first place. "I'll do what I can, and you tell me if I look like a guy," Sakura said, and ushered Miyako out of their room. She shut the door behind the female officer and opened up the closet. She smirked. They had done her the privilege of setting down the school uniform, and some casual male clothing. Wonderful, Sakura thought, making a face.  
  
She slipped out of her long-sleeved shirt and unclasped her bra. She wasn't as fully developed as all the other girls in her class, and she had no shame. She easily banded her breasts down with some large tape, which seemed to have been laid down just for her on her desk. Making sure that she looked flat enough, Sakura slipped on the school uniform, which included a pair of long, black pants. It was nothing out of the ordinary, and the shirt was a black button-down with a crisp, white tie.  
  
A knock sounded on the other side of the door. "Sakura? Can I come in?"  
  
"Hai," Sakura answered simply. Miyako entered, and smiled.  
  
"Or should I say , Karaku-kun?" Miyako teased. "I'm going to cut your hair. Hope you don't mind."  
  
Sakura shook her head and seated herself down on a chair while Miyako drew out a pair of scissors. Sakura squeezed her eyes shut through the whole ordeal. The sound of the snipping of scissors was deafening to her ears.  
  
"Done!" Miyako said proudly and set a portable mirror in front of Sakura's face. "Not bad!"  
  
Sakura gave a weak smile. No, it wasn't that bad. Sakura's hair just brushed by her ears, and her bangs remained hanging over her eyes. She certainly looked like a very feminine man.  
  
"You look great, Karaku-kun," Miyako said assuringly. "You could actually pass as a male." Miyako quickly glanced at her watch. "We'd better hurry. School starts in about twenty minutes."  
  
"Then what's the rush?" Sakura mumbled, but followed Miyako out the door with her bag anyway. Sakura had noticed that Miyako was dressed in a crisp suit, looking like a professor of some kind.  
  
They had to only walk about a block to reach the school. Both undercover 'agents' quickly ushered themselves to the principal's office, where he got Miyako into one classroom, and Sakura following a teacher to another.  
  
"Now, don't be scared, Sonogi," the teacher said, smiling gaily. He was young, but Sakura noticed he was ignorant.  
  
"Don't worry, I'm not," Sakura said and followed the teacher into the classroom.  
  
"Class!" the teacher, called Mekura-sensei, yelled above the noise of the boys. The boys quickly settled down into their seats, and gave their attention to the teacher. "We have a new student today. His name is Sonogi Karaku. Be kind to him. Take a seat, Sonogi," Mekura-sensei ordered.  
  
And thus began the first day of school and work  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
C-Mage: She's insane. Really, she is. Doing that to poor Sakura. Comments, criticisms, and flames all welcome. ^_^;;; The next part should be out soon!  
  
T.Anjel: Don't worry!! Ack~! ::Attempts at dodging flying vegetables and anything else that was of near the reader's reach:: It's all for the romance!! Literally! She'll be back to normal! I swear! But I'm not gonna be able to give it all away, so just bear with me for the while. 


	3. New Friends

C-Mage: Okay! Here's the second chapter and third installment of our illustrious fic, written by yours truly. All characters, except for original ones, are OOC, but for a purpose. We don't own CCS, never will, and if you sue me, you'll get my old glasses and my brother. -_-;;; Don't know what you'll get from Tiny Anjel, though. Hope you enjoy it!  
  
C-Mage: They like us! ::runs out of room and comes back dragging T. Anjel:: They really like us!  
T. Anjel: And you called me an idiot! What are you talking about?  
C-Mage: Look! ::jabs finger at computer screen:: Fourteen reviews! Fourteen whole reviews!  
T. Anjel: Your point?  
C-Mage: That's more reviews than any of my stories have ever gotten! Yay!  
T. Anjel: You're stalling the readers.....  
C-Mage: So? We have fourteen whole reviews! Yippee! ::begins to hula dance around her computer::   
  
T. Anjel: Not too much of plot in here…more with characters and such…. Really sleepy and can't think straight. Gomen minna-san! ::tearz pouring out of my eyes:: I leave it to you, Crystal-Mage-chan! ::faints in bed::  
  
Title: Hooded  
By: Crystal Mage and Tiny Anjel  
Summary: Sakura's first day at her new school, where she meets a few students and gets a small lead.  
  
Hooded- Chapter 2- New Friends  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
As Sakura sat down at her desk she looked around her, taking in the details of the room and the students in it. It was a standard classroom with windows along the right-hand wall, five rows of four desks each, and the teacher's lectern was situated in front of and to the left of the students' desks. The floor was a plain black and white linoleum tiling, and behind the lectern was a long, clean chalkboard where Mekura-sensei wrote down the characters for 'Sonogi Karaku'.  
  
Sitting down at the only empty seat in the room, one directly to the right of a pale boy with black hair and glasses, Sakura noticed the curious stares of the surrounding students. It was nearing the end of the school year, and they normally didn't get new students at that time. The boy looked at her disconcertingly as Mekura-sensei told them to open their Japanese books to page fifty-seven, and then Mekura-sensei called out, "Hiiragizawa, please read from line nine."  
  
Abruptly the boy stood up, glasses glinting in the light, and started to read out in perfect Japanese, describing the life of a flower that had enchanted itself to turn human to learn why humans always picked flowers without asking. The story was ridiculous, but that was the norm in the schools, and Sakura was used to it by then. By the time the flower had gotten to the outskirts of a small village, Mekura-sensei had called on the next boy, and Sakura decided that she could tune the class out for the time being, making sure to turn the pages with the students and to keep an ear tuned for her 'name'.   
  
Instead she thought about how she and Miyako would start the investigation of who was the murderer. Since the two boys who had previously been killed were both popular, good-looking, and generally held in high regard by their classmates, it stood to reason that the next murders would also be of students of the same type, also popular, good-looking, and generally held in high regard by classmates.  
  
Just as Sakura decided that she should probably introduce herself to some of the more popular students the lesson ended and Mekura-sensei left the room, leaving the class to itself for a few minutes until the next teacher arrived. Most of the boys put away their Japanese books and talked to each other, sometimes shouting across the room to be heard.  
  
When Sakura searched in her bag for her schedule, wanting to see what their next class was and who the teacher was, the boy to her right looked up from the thick English volume he was engrossed in reading. "Our next class is Mathematics," he supplied in a friendly voice, "with Terashi-sensei."  
  
"Arigatou," Sakura said, putting her bag down and smiling slightly at him. She quickly reminded herself to keep a masculine voice. As best she could do it, anyway.  
  
"Douitashimashite, Sonogi-san," he replied. "I'm Hiiragizawa Eriol, by the way. If you want you could eat lunch with me and my friend until you get more settled in." He moved his head in the direction of a chocolate brown-haired boy glowering at his desk, who looked to be of Chinese descent. "We're both on the soccer team," he added with a charming smile.  
  
Sakura thought about it for a moment, weighing the pros and cons. On the one hand, she'd prefer to eat lunch by herself and mull over clues to find probable suspects, but on the other, it couldn't hurt to gain friends here; plus, they were on the soccer team, whose members were fairly popular in their own right. "Hai," she replied to the grinning Hiiragizawa. "And arigatou, Hiiragizawa-san."  
  
"No problem, Sonogi-san." Hiiragizawa smiled one last time, then turned his attention to the entering teacher as he put away his book. If Sakura had seen Hiiragizawa at that moment, she would have seen his eyes, and she would have noticed the mysterious glint which played in them.   
  
The teacher who entered looked to be about in her sixties, with her gray-and-silver hair pulled back severely into a bun crowning her head, and her half-moon spectacles were worn low on her nose. Dressed in a no-nonsense fashion, she looked the epitome of strict librarians. Walking up to the chalkboard she picked up a piece of chalk and wrote an equation on the board and turned to look at the class. "Which of you students can tell me how I would solve this equation for both variables, x and y?" she asked, frowning at the class in an unmerciful manner.  
  
As the lesson started Sakura's attention faded out, though she appeared as if she was paying rapt attention. Instead, she looked at her fellow students through her peripheral vision, sorting out the ones who could be possible victims and the ones who could be possible killers, all the while keeping an eye on Hiiragizawa, who seemed to be listening acutely, and on his Chinese friend, who looked as if he were quietly napping on his desk. How lax were the teachers here, she thought, to let their own students nap through class, forgetting that she had done the same previously.  
  
About forty-five minutes into the lesson Terashi-sensei said, "Sonogi, would you please come to the board and solve this problem?" Standing up, Sakura went to the board, studying the problem as she went. When she got to the chalkboard she picked up a piece of chalk and promptly solved it, turning around and standing next to it when she had finished. Terashi-sensei looked at the problem, which had been one of her harder ones, and said, "Well done, Sonogi. You may return to your seat." After Sakura had seated herself again Terashi-sensei returned her attention to the class, asking, "Can any of you tell me how Sonogi solved that problem?" At the show of hands she replied, "Good.... And can any of you solve this problem?"  
  
After another forty minutes of the incessant boredom the class ended and Terashi-sensei announced that they could go to lunch break. Reaching into her bag Sakura pulled out her bento box; apparently Miyako had found enough time that morning to fix her a proper lunch. At the thought Sakura experienced a pang and realized that she missed her father and brother, who'd always fixed her a bento box each morning. Putting her feelings away for another time, Sakura stood up and met Hiiragizawa near the door where he was waiting patiently, with no trace of his friend to be seen.  
  
"I thought we were eating with your friend," Sakura said, confused.  
  
Hiiragizawa laughed. "Our friendship is more of a mutual appreciation and joke, really," he explained to her. "We have much in common, and few friends, so we bug each other and hang out on occasion."  
  
"So how can you eat together if you aren't friends?" asked Sakura, slightly baffled.  
  
"I'll show you," he said in response, leaving Sakura to get a little annoyed and wonder why she'd ever agreed to this in the first place. I wanted to prove that I could handle a difficult case, she told herself, making sure her patience didn't run out. As Sakura thought, he led the way out of the building and into a field where the whole school seemed to be eating and enjoying the weather, sitting on the lush grass and chattering companionably.  
  
"Over here," he said, walking towards a large cherry tree to a side of the lawn. It looked to be deserted, just starting to bloom, and Sakura breathed in the scent of her name-sake, for a moment forgetting about the past eleven years and her mission here at the school, and instead remembering one of the last times she'd seen her mother alive.  
  
It had been a few days before the tragic incident, and she and her mother had gone out to the park to play. While there the cherry blossoms had started to fall, looking like light pink snow and smelling heavenly. While Nadeshiko had watched her daughter dancing happily in them she had told her about why she had named her 'Sakura' and the meaning of the name.  
  
Sakura must have sighed, because when she opened her eyes Hiiragizawa was staring at her strangely, as if he knew what she was thinking. She mentally kicked herself in the head for such weak thoughts. With just a small grunt, she hastily walked forward to the tree and sat down, bento box in front of her, trying to ignore Hiiragizawa's smiling stare. As he sat down and they started to unpack their lunches, Sakura asked, "So how can you and your...friend...eat together if you aren't really friends, and no one's around anyway?"  
  
Hiiragizawa chuckled before replying. "That's the beauty of it all, Sonogi-san." Then he turned his head upward and shouted, "You can join us now, Li-san." Hiiragizawa smiled at the look of astonishment that crossed Sakura's face when a slight male figure jumped out of the tree to land standing in front of them, bento box in one hand and piece of bitten chocolate in the other.  
  
"You do that too much, Hiiragizawa," said the boy sourly as he sat down where he had been standing.  
  
Ignoring the comment, Hiiragizawa introduced Sakura and the boy happily. "Sonogi-san, this is Li Syaoran. Li-san, Sonogi Karaku. You remember the new student introduced this morning, ne?"  
  
Li gave a grunt in response.  
  
"Well, it happens that he sits next to me in class, so I invited him to eat lunch with us. You don't mind, do you?" he asked, infuriating smile appearing again to further irritate Li.  
  
"The only reason that seat was empty was because no one wanted to sit by you," came the answer.  
  
"No more than they'd want to sit by you, Li-san, and I seem to recall quite a number of females who'd die to sit by you. Of course they don't know you personally...." Hiiragizawa grinned at Sakura, who smiled weakly back, while Li glared at Hiiragizawa.  
  
The small group ate in silence for a while, smug, angry, or otherwise, until Hiiragizawa decided to attempt to strike up a conversation again. "So, Sonogi-san, where are you from?" he asked.  
  
"Kyoto," she replied automatically.  
  
"So what brings you to Tokyo, then?" Hiiragizawa inquired curiously.  
  
Sakura swallowed a bit of food, did some quick thinking, and replied, "I've been living with my aunt ever since my parents died two years ago, and she just got transferred here because of her job. I believe she's working as a teacher here, in fact."  
  
"Really? So you're not on some mission for an all-important Chinese clan, like Li-san here?" he asked, smirking when Li glared even more.  
  
"Iie," Sakura replied, getting slightly annoyed by the boy's questions and also wondering about Li.  
  
"So what school did you go to?" he asked, soaking up the information like a sponge.  
  
At least Sakura didn't have to lie on this one. "Kyoto Prefectural Nanyo Senior High School."  
  
"And you were enrolled in the same grade as you are now?" Hiiragizawa asked.  
  
Sakura, getting vexed by his continuous prying, bit back sharply, "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" She glared at Hiiragizawa as he laughed, and Li ate on in silence, seemingly oblivious to Sakura's annoyance of Hiiragizawa.  
  
"Gomen nasai, Sonogi-san," Hiiragizawa said, putting on an impeccably straight face, "but I wanted to see how far I could push you before you reacted." Sakura glared at him once more before resuming her eating, and Hiiragizawa - for the first time the whole lunch period - lapsed into total silence.  
  
Eventually, having imbibed a little more food, Sakura cooled down and thought. She'd need somewhere to start on the investigation, and Hiiragizawa seemed as good a source as any. Hoping to get another conversation started and remembering something mentioned earlier, she asked, "So you're both on the soccer team?"  
  
"Hai." Hiiragizawa grinned widely, obviously very proud of himself. "In fact, we're the team's star players."  
  
"More like I am and you cheat," Li said, speaking for the third time during lunch, not counting the grunt.  
  
"Li-san, I'm wounded!" cried out Hiiragizawa in mock grief.  
  
Ignoring the small argument, and seeing a possible lead, Sakura continued, turning on some of her little-used charm. "Really? How odd that the two best players on the school team are friends." At this Li growled and Hiiragizawa smiled again.   
  
"As I have already stated," Hiiragizawa said, "we are not exactly friends, but it is a little peculiar, isn't it? It probably has more to do with our coming from places other than Japan, actually."  
  
"You mean you're not from Japan? Li-san looks does look more Chinese than Japanese, but I did think that you'd be Japanese. You speak the language very well."  
  
Hiiragizawa seemed to be enjoying the praise, though Li, still glaring, did not. "Arigatou, Sonogi-san. I'm actually from England, but my parents have always been very interested in Japanese and Chinese culture and had me learn the languages of both."  
  
"That seems like something very extreme to do, purely out of interest," Sakura commented.  
  
"Hai, but I didn't mind. I've always loved learning."  
  
"A bit too much, if you ask me," said Li, who had apparently been listening, even if he'd appeared not to.  
  
Hiiragizawa threw Li a look, then continued, "A few years ago, wanting to learn more about the cultures and life of the people than they accurately can from books, my parents moved to Japan. About a year later Li-san showed up mysteriously and started school here as well."  
  
"So when did you both become star soccer players?" Sakura asked, seeming to be immensely interested.  
  
"Well, the year when Li-san arrived, I decided that I had nothing to lose, having few friends, and tried out for the team. It turned out that I was very good, so the team kept me. Li-san's getting on the team also happened that year, when during Gym a ball came flying at him, and he kicked a perfect goal into the net without even trying. After that the coach wouldn't let him go, and we've been the best since." He nodded decisively, as if waiting for her to refute his point.  
  
"I still say that you cheat, Hiiragizawa," Li commented, eating some more chocolate. Realizing that lunch was almost over and she'd barely eaten anything, Sakura hastily tried to eat everything while still being polite. The result was that Hiiragizawa and Li stared at her oddly, as if Sakura had grown another head. Sakura made a mental note not to eat politely in front of guys, and quickly wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.  
  
"Gomen Hiiragizawa-san, gomen, Li-san," Sakura said, standing up with her bento box. "It's been very pleasant talking to you today; perhaps we can resume our conversation after school over some tea?" she asked, hoping that she would get the chance to talk with them about the murderer. And at least she now had possibilities for victims - now she knew some of who she'd need to protect later on. "I'll pay," she added, seeing Hiiragizawa, for his part, waver. Li just sat there like a chocolate-eating brick.  
  
"Okay," said Hiiragizawa. "I have plans with my girlfriend, though, so would you mind if she came along? We can meet her where we had planned and then go out."  
  
"Hai," replied Sakura, pleased. She'd get to talk more extensively with Hiiragizawa, even if his girlfriend was going to come along. Who knows, she thought; she might go home after hearing what I want to talk about. She allowed herself to smile slightly and asked, "And would you like to come along, also, Li-san?"  
  
Li looked up and blushed slightly, for some reason Sakura couldn't fathom, and, apparent by the slight shaking of his head, neither could he. Hiiragizawa, taking it as a refusal, said, "Come on, Li-san. It can't be too bad. Plus, I know that you have nothing to do after school today, since we don't have practice. It can't hurt, can it?"  
  
Li shrugged, cleared his throat, and said, "H-hai."  
  
"Arigatou," Sakura said, and Li's face flushed light pink again. Sakura wondered briefly if he had a fever, before remembering that she'd been headed back inside, and turned around, walking back into the school to find her classroom and peruse her schedule for what her next class was.  
  
Walking across the green grass, she looked around, seeing the boys of various ages sitting and talking without a care in the world. It was her job to protect them now, she realized, whether she got in mortal danger doing it or not. Why do I even bother doing this? She asked herself. She could die in the process of fulfilling her job, and for what? People she didn't even know or care to know. So why was she doing it?  
  
She was, she saw, back where she had started. Turning herself onto auto-pilot, she explored deeper, going back to see what had led her to join the police back when she was thirteen. It was, she finally conceived, as a kind of response to her mother's brutal murder. After having seen her mother like that she'd eventually wanted to get revenge, and her going to the police had been so that she could easier get revenge against people who pulled apart families and left other feeling helpless and ending up like she had.  
  
Finding that she had stopped walking while thinking, she resumed her pace towards the building, stunned to have realized that her want to help others went that deep. She shook her head to clear it of thoughts and tried to think about what she was going to ask Hiiragizawa when they went out for tea.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sakura's next two classes were as dull as the first two had been, with Sakura getting called on once to answer a routine question on atoms and valence electrons. All in all it was a very boring day, with the only thing making it bearable being that she'd gotten a start on her investigation.  
  
After her last class, History, had ended, she gathered her stuff together in her bag and stood up. Seeing Hiiragizawa and Li also getting ready to leave, she said, "I'll meet both of you in front of the gates in five minutes, okay?"  
  
"Hai," replied Hiiragizawa, and Li nodded.  
  
After she'd gotten all of her stuff together, Sakura went to her locker, where she traded her school shoes for her casual shoes, and then headed to the school entrance to intercept Miyako and tell her her plans.  
  
She waited there for a few minutes until she finally saw Miyako exiting the building, saying good-bye to a few of her new students and carrying a stack of papers that she was looking over. When Miyako saw her, she waved and came over, saying, "It's a good thing I have a teaching degree, isn't it?"  
  
"Hai," answered Sakura distractedly. "Listen, Miyako-san -"  
  
"You should probably call me Konishi-sensei," she said, mindful of all the students around them. "Now what is it?"  
  
"Konishi-sensei," Sakura started obediently, "I've asked two of students to have tea with me after school, and I'm meeting them at the gate in -" she checked her watch "- one minute." Miyako thought for barely a second and gave Sakura a smile.   
  
"Just be back by five to six," Miyako said.   
  
Sakura nodded and turned to leave, but was stopped by Miyako's hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Is it for the case?" she asked in a hushed tone. Sakura only nodded in response.  
  
Sakura waved slightly and then turned towards the gate, glanced at her watch, and, seeing that she had less than half a minute, started to jog a little to get there on time. When she reached the gate she saw both Hiiragizawa and Li waiting, school bags slung over their shoulders, Hiiragizawa talking quietly and Li responding. "Gomen," she said, stopping in front of them to catch her breath. "I had to tell my aunt where I was going."  
  
"Can we hurry, then?" Hiiragizawa asked, glancing quickly over his shoulder, and even Li looked a little nervous.  
  
"Sure," Sakura replied, and they started to leave the school grounds walking quickly, Hiiragizawa shooting apprehensive glances over his shoulder every now and then.  
  
After hearing high-pitched screams behind them, Hiiragizawa broke out into a run, forcing Sakura and Li to also run to keep up. After a few blocks he rounded a corner and motioned for them to hide in a doorway, shushing Sakura's questions by a finger to his lips. After a few minutes he peeked his head around the corner, and, apparently satisfied with what he saw - or didn't see - he started walking down the street at a much slower pace.  
  
"We lost them," he said, breathing a sigh of relief.  
  
Sakura, confused, asked, "Who?"  
  
"My raving fans, that's who," responded Hiiragizawa tartly. "I told you that I had a fan club, didn't I?" When Sakura shook her head he continued. "Well, I do, and I guess they found out where I was going and decided to give chase."  
  
Li ran a hand through his unruly hair. "It's technically the soccer team's fan club, you baka," he said. When Sakura swiveled her head to look at him he shrugged, and Hiiragizawa chuckled without shame.  
  
"Come on," urged Hiiragizawa. "At least they're not still following us, and I'd like to meet my girlfriend on time." Having said that, he started to walk more decisively, turning a few corners before reaching a park where a girl about their age was sitting on a bench, obviously waiting for someone.  
  
The girl had long black hair and still dressed in her school uniform, probably having left right after her classes ended. The outfit consisted of a white pleated skirt and a pale blue top with white accessories, and part of her hair was tied back by a matching pale blue ribbon. Her complexion was very fair, and she looked as breakable as glass. She stood up when she saw them approaching and smiled, lighting up her violet eyes.  
  
"Konnichiwa, Eriol-san," she said in a beautiful voice.  
  
Hiiragizawa's face fairly beamed when she spoke and he took her hand, saying, "Konnichiwa, Tomoyo-san. You look lovely today."  
  
She laughed at the complement, as if used to them, and answered, "Arigatou; but I did not know that when I was coming to meet you I'd be meeting three people instead of one."  
  
Hiiragizawa had the grace to look bashful at the comment and looked down, saying, "It was a last minute arrangement, but I insisted that you be allowed to come along."  
  
"If I'm going to be spending my afternoon with them, why don't you introduce me to your friends?" she asked, cleary enoying playing with him.  
  
Hiiragizawa looked startled and said, "Gomen nasai!" Then he turned to face all three of them, cleared his throat, and started introductions. "Li-san, Sonogi-san, this is Daidouji Tomoyo, my girlfriend. Tomoyo-san, this is Li Syaoran, one of my fellow soccer players, and Sonogi Karaku, a new student at my school," he said, gesturing to the people respectvely. After they'd greeted each other Hiiragizawa said, "Now may we all go to tea? Sonogi-san has asked to further talk with me, and I'm eager to continue our conversation."  
  
Daidouji laughed again and replied, "Hai."  
  
Hiiragizawa waited for nods of assent from Sakura and Li, and then started walking again, in a different direction, holding Daidouji's hand.  
  
As Sakura watched Hiiragizawa and Daidouji talking, she noticed that Daidouji seemed fully in control of the dialouge, a surprising feat for so frail looking a girl. And, she realized, Daidouji must also be very intelligent, to be able to keep such an inquisitive personality in check like that.  
  
Sakura continued on that vein of thought for a while, then noticed that she was lagging behind the others, and jogged to resume her position to the left of Li. Remembering to keep in pace with the group, she put her thoughts to what she'd ask Hiiragizawa, and maybe Li, if she could get anything out of him, about the murders that had recently taken two of their school's students.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
C-Mage: Okay, kind of boring, I know, but we don't really want to kill anyone for a while.... Builds up the suspense, you know? Writing about Eriol, Syaoran, and Tomoyo by their last names is hard, I tell you! Try writing 'Daidouji' or 'Hiiragizawa' a lot. Ugh. All of the babbling has a purpose, I think. I'm pretty sure, anyway. Review, flame, e-mail us, whatever. Arigatou for reading. 


	4. Three Down and Sakura-chan

T.Anjel: GOMEN for the delay in getting the chapter up! It's my entire fault! GOMEN GOMEN GOMEN GOMEN GOMEN! No excuses. We wanna thank everyone who reviewed! ARIGATOU~ to: IC Goddess of Fate, Keesha, Lakshmi, ChibiSakura374737, Skyechan, Shydevil, Keisan, Pinkuser, JadeMoonWing, Silver-Cherry, blonde @ heart, cool camzy blue, Fanny chan, trueblue, anime_lover, Silent Angel, and Tomomi. Arigatou minna!  
  
C-Mage: Gomen nasai for the delay! I told a few people it'd get out last Friday, and it didn't.... -_-;;; Arigatou to everyone who reviewed, and to those of you who read it and didn't review...well...at least you read it.  
  
Disclaimers: CCS belongs to Clamp.  
  
Summary: The group goes to get tea, and Sakura has a few odd conversations.  
  
Chapter 3- Three down and Sakura-chan  
  
The teahouse was small and cozy. It was nothing fancy or expensive, much to Sakura's wallet's relief. Hiiragizawa immediately sat in front of the low table next to Daidouji, and Sakura sat beside Li, who sat across from Hiiragizawa.  
  
Everyone's order was quick and traditional, as it seemed they came here often, and Sakura followed their lead, only ordering her green tea a little weak.  
  
"You like weak tea?" Hiiragizawa asked when their orders arrived and Sakura had taken a sip.  
  
"Hai," she replied, as Daidouji's eyes turned from gazing out the nearby window to rest on her.  
  
"I'll have to remember that in case you ever come over to my house for tea," Hiiragizawa remarked, and smiled at her charmingly enough to make Sakura a little uneasy.  
  
The conversation evidently over, the group sat in silence for a few minutes, taking small, polite sips of their tea, and occasionally munching on the treats provided by the waiter. Finally, Hiiragizawa broke the quiet.  
  
"So what did you want to talk to us about, Sonogi-kun?" Hiiragizawa asked pleasantly.  
  
Sakura silently thanked him for starting the conversation, as she hadn't wanted to sound nosy by starting the discussion herself. She shrugged casually. "I guess…anything that will help me get acquainted with the school and the students, really." Sakura tried to ignore Daidouji's stare. She was watching her with a keen interest, which bothered Sakura.  
  
"That's pretty general," Hiiragizawa said, seeming not to notice his girlfriend's watchful eye of his new acquaintance.  
  
"Uhm.... Then why don't you tell me about the soccer team," Sakura said, hoping it was a good start.  
  
"Are you planning to join?" Hiiragizawa asked, smiling his unwavering smile.  
  
Sakura thought for a moment, thinking that Hiiragizawa's idea was in fact a pretty good one. "I actually think I might."  
  
"Do you know how to play?" Li asked, not bothering to turn his head from his tea - a Chinese blend, Sakura noted - to look at Sakura.  
  
Sakura only nodded.  
  
Hiiragizawa scratched his chin. "It seems strange, Sonogi-kun," he said, "that we would have a new student coming in right after the deaths of two students who attended this school."  
  
Perfect! "Who were they?" Sakura asked, trying to sound mildly interested. If she let on how strong her interest was on the topic, it might give her away.  
  
"They were both on the soccer team," Li said nonchalantly.  
  
"Then you must have known them," Sakura inferred, looking at Hiiragizawa.  
  
"Hai," Hiiragizawa replied, infuriatingly giving her no lead.  
  
"They were awful, though," Li said critically.  
  
"Now, Li-san," Hiiragizawa said. When Li just looked at him grumpily, he said reluctantly, "They weren't the best on the team." At this Li snorted derisively, causing Hiiragizawa to glare at him.  
  
"They were both pretty popular with the girls in the fan club, though," Daidouji said, speaking for the first time.  
  
"You mean the fan club for the soccer team?" Sakura asked, looking Daidouji straight in the eye for the first time since they'd gotten to the teahouse.  
  
"Hai," she replied, watching Sakura's every move and glance.  
  
Sakura, unnerved, distracted herself for while with her tea, thinking of a good question to ask without sounding too curious. "Are there any overly obsessive girls in the club?" Sakura asked cautiously.  
  
"You mean more obsessive than the norm?" Sakura nodded. "Just a few," Hiiragizawa replied, munching on a rice cake. "The entire club attends a co-ed school a couple of blocks down from here, and come whenever they can to our practice or our games. They're a bit like our unofficial cheerleaders," he said, making Li wince. "In fact, I've heard that if you want to join you have to transfer schools so that you can go to after school meetings. Tomoyo-san, you go to that school, right?"  
  
"Hai," she replied, smiling at him. "They have meetings every day, where they spend the whole time trying to vote on who's the cutest. They actually put up posters of the "Cutest Player of the Month", and swoon when they see them." Li and Hiiragizawa both cringed slightly at the last thing she's mentioned, and Sakura nodded thoughtfully.  
  
They sat in general silence for little, until Sakura noticed that all three of her fellow peers were eying her strangely. Li always shot quick glances at her, trying not to seem interested in her actions. Hiiragizawa just smiled his smile, but always seemed to be observant of how Sakura responded with everything. And Daidouji was just watching her. "Is there something wrong?" Sakura asked hesitantly. Can they tell? she nervously thought, and slumped her form slightly.  
  
Getting no response did nothing to soothe her nerves. Last question, she thought. They're getting suspicious.... "Do you have any idea who could've...you know…." Sakura trailed off as she began to feel a bit uncomfortable with asking the question.  
  
"….killed them?" Hiiragizawa finished off with a strange glint in his eye.  
  
Sakura nodded hesitantly.  
  
"Iie," he replied, shrugging.  
  
"Aa…," Sakura said quietly, and abruptly got up. "Gomen minna-san," she said quickly, and dropped her share of yen on the table. "It was great talking to you. Hiiragizawa-kun. Li-kun. Daidouji-san. I will see you tomorrow, ne?"  
  
They nodded in response, and Sakura left, feeling it was hard to breathe. This wasn't going to be as easy as she had originally thought. They were suspicious, she knew.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"He seemed nervous," Tomoyo said, finishing up her tea.  
  
"Li-kun didn't make it any easier for him," Eriol replied, glaring slightly at the offender.  
  
"He's just another dorky new kid. What do I care?" Syaoran shot back at Eriol.  
  
"You're too cruel," Eriol said sarcastically.  
  
"Did he seem a bit strange to you?" Tomoyo asked, breaking up the miniature argument.  
  
They both shrugged in unison, not knowing what Tomoyo was talking about. Well...Syaoran didn't know, anyway.  
  
"Just asking," Tomoyo said, and smiled. "I had better go. I have an errand to run. Ja!" She gave Eriol a small kiss on the cheek and left the teahouse.  
  
Syaoran glowered at Eriol, who was smiling daintily at him. "What's so funny, Hiiragizawa?"  
  
Eriol shrugged elegantly. "I just think that this school year has just become extremely interesting."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Syaoran asked naively.  
  
"You will see."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sakura ran her hand through her messy tangle of hair, forgetting about the missing hair at the bottom. She let out a sigh. She had a feeling the students wouldn't really open up to her yet. Maybe she was being too forward, or maybe she was just plain too suspicious looking.  
  
Sakura let out another heavy sigh. This was going to be a long and tiring case. She knew it.  
  
A loud shrill cut through Sakura's thoughts. She put her hand in her thin jacket's pocket and found a cell phone. She vaguely remembered Miyako putting it in there that morning, just in case there was an emergency. Such as this? There was only one way to find out.  
  
"Moshi moshi," Sakura said into the phone, leaning against a building that just happened to be at the corner she was at.  
  
"Kinomoto?" a low voice growled back.  
  
"Hai?" she replied, unfazed by the threatening tone. After she replied to her name, the man mumbled barely coherent words through his side of the phone.  
  
Sakura froze. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know what to do. She just clicked off the cell phone, forgetting that someone was on the other side. She had come to Tokyo to help the boys, yet it didn't seem that she had gotten there fast enough to help. No. Another one was dead. Gone. She knew the address where he had been found, and, after checking what street she was on, she headed straight to it.  
  
The house was large and a bit run-down; obviously the boy had needed help getting into the school, Sakura unconsciously noted. The pale blue paint on a few of the boards of siding, and every now and then a few shingles were missing from the roof.  
  
Just as Sakura started up the boy's front porch, Miyako came storming out. "Sakura-chan!" she quietly exclaimed, seeing where she was going, and grabbed the pale girl's shoulders. "Don't go inside," she whispered softly, yet forcefully.  
  
Sakura gently shoved off Miyako's hands and continued climbing up the wooden steps. Miyako followed behind her, resigned, and said, "His father was killed in a car crash three years ago, and since then his mother has had to take out a few loans to keep him in school. It's been hard for her to get a good paying job, and she's gone into debt trying to pay off all her bills. He was their only child and her only reminder of her husband, so she's always tried to keep him happy."  
  
"She won't have to anymore," a detached part of her said, and Miyako nodded silently.  
  
Inside, there were cops everywhere, taking notes on everything, from the immediate appearance of everything to the family's financial state . A middle-aged woman wept uncontrollably in the corner of the front room, and was being comforted by a graying man, who was probably her father. Sakura noticed that periodically an officer would come over, ask her a question, get a choked answer, and be shooed away by the man.  
  
Sakura mechanically led herself to the boy's room upstairs, the way marked by the massing of blue-clad people. When she got to his room she noticed that it was full of brand-new stuff; apparently he's had top priority over the house and bills. His bed, surrounded by police officers, was in the far corner, and she squeezed her way through, thankful of her small size as she made it with ease.  
  
A monstrous sight greeted her eyes. The boy's body was resting peacefully on the bed, seemingly not moved or touched, the only thing showing that it wasn't a live body being that it had no head, the neck's stump covered in a mass of clotted blood.  
  
Sakura looked at him pillow and, seeing nothing but a large red-brown stain, looked down. His head was resting on the floor in a pool of blood, his eyes closed. He had been asleep, she could tell, and had probably felt no pain.  
  
Damn it! Damn it all! What had he done to deserve an early grave? Who in their right mind would kill boys who had barely grown up to be men?  
  
"You couldn't do anything about it, Sakura-chan," Miyako whispered into Sakura's ear. "He was killed in the morning when we arrived here."  
  
"And they found him just now?" Sakura asked in a monotonic voice.  
  
Miyako just nodded.  
  
Sakura discovered that the more she looked at the severed head, the more detail she could see. She could see the layers of flesh, the jugular, the windpipe, the esophagus; all coated with thick blood. Quick flashbacks of her dead mother ran by Sakura's head, making her feel sick. No. Don't think about her. Not now. She swallowed the bile that rose in her throat, leaving a raw taste, and clenched her fists into tight balls, digging her nails into her skin. No one deserved to die like this. No one.  
  
As if Miyako was able to read her mind, she spoke again into Sakura's ear. "Just try to prevent the next one. That's all we can do."  
  
Sakura gave no reply, and swiveled around to leave. As she left the room she could hear the beginnings of clean up, the photographers having gotten all necessary pictures. Now they would wrap him up in a plastic bag for easier transport to the station, where they would perform an autopsy to find out the cause of death. She had no want to see that happen. Miyako silently followed Sakura out of the house, paying her respects to the parent as she left.  
  
"Sakura," Miyako said quietly, walking beside her on the twilight-lit bare street.  
  
"Call me Karaku-kun, Konishi-sensei," Sakura replied, and crossed the street.  
  
"Karaku-kun," Miyako said. "Did you get anything from the students?"  
  
Sakura shrugged. "It's only the first day. They probably think I'm being really strange, asking them so many questions at once. I'm doing a crappy job at going undercover." She spat on the ground in self-derision.  
  
"Don't be so hard on yourself," Miyako said, keeping a comforting tone. "This is your first job."  
  
"And it's one where there are lives at stake. Who knows how many!"  
  
"Calm down, Karaku-kun," Miyako said. "There's no point in getting all worked up. Just put all the pieces together. One at a time."  
  
Sakura just nodded in response. Finally, she came to an abrupt halt and turned to face Miyako. "Konishi-sensei, I'm going to take a walk. I just need some fresh air," Sakura said, and without waiting for a reply, strolled into a quiet park.  
  
She needed peace. No cars or people. Just herself and her thoughts. Sure, she was taking things a bit quickly. She was being too impatient. There was no question about it. All she had to do now was to be more aware of everything she did. Sakura sighed and slumped on the grass. The day had no chance of getting any better.  
  
The new students that she met had given her vague information. Especially that Hiiragizawa. Li hadn't said much. At the thought of Li, a low blush spread across her cheeks, which she quickly ignored, and resumed her quiet thinking. She spread herself out on the grass, squinting at the dim rays of light, which managed to squeeze through the leaves of trees. How had it gotten to be so late? She must have been at the victim's house longer than she had thought.  
  
She quickly pushed such idle thoughts aside, having no use for them. She would have to be more careful. There was no question about it. She would have to earn the trust of the students, and pretend to be their friend.  
  
Before Sakura could go any deeper into her thoughts, she felt a figure lie down on the grass beside her. She craned her head around, seeing a familiar pool of pale skin and dark hair. "Daidouji-san?"  
  
"Sonogi-san," Tomoyo greeted with a polite smile.  
  
Sakura began to get nervous. What's she doing here? she thought. I don't know what to do. Sakura's palms began to sweat, and she wiped them on her pants, hoping that the observant Daidouji wouldn't notice.  
  
Tomoyo locked eyes with Sakura. Those blatant emerald eyes were not a common sight to see, she knew. She had a hunch, a hunch that she was willing to play out. "Sonogi-san," Tomoyo began, "you remind me of someone I used to know."  
  
"Oh...really?" Sakura replied, trying not to sound tense, eager for the conversation to be over.  
  
"She's a second cousin of mine," Tomoyo said, keeping her eyes level with Sakura's. "We used to live in a nearby town together when we were young. We were best friends. Then her mother died, and she moved away…to Kyoto. 'Kaa-san moved here to busy herself with the company, to keep away her grief."  
  
"How sad," Sakura said simply, trying to keep the pain out of her voice. This had always been a sensitive topic for her, but she wouldn't let on to Daidouji. The mere fact that she knew about this meant....  
  
This was Daidouji Tomoyo. There had been something familiar about her, which Sakura hadn't been about to pinpoint hours ago, but now she remembered. But could she be trusted?  
  
"Her name was Kinomoto Sakura," Tomoyo continued, breaking through Sakura's thoughts. "Do you by any chance happen to have known her while you were in Kyoto?"  
  
Sakura just shook her head, not trusting the words that might have come out of her mouth.  
  
"You were always a bad liar, Sakura-chan."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
They were looking for her now. They were being careful; having people go undercover for her. How stupid of them. As if that would do them any good at all. She would kill all of them. No matter how many cops were around. No one could humiliate her and get away with it. Nobody.  
  
She took out a crumpled piece of paper from her worn-out pocket. Three down. She had killed him earlier than she expected. She'd wait. She'd give those stupid cops some time; see if they got any closer to her. Oh, yes, she'd give them some time.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
C-Mage: Sometimes I amaze myself.... Well, I managed to change it from six pages to...barely eight. o.O I hope it doesn't have any major problems in it or anything. Comments, criticisms, flames, etc., review on FFN or e-mail us as crystal_anjel@yahoo.com. Arigatou for reading! 


	5. Competition and Fans

C-Mage: And this time it's my fault that it's so late. Gomen nasai, minna-san. I don't even have an excuse, really. I am SO sorry.... I hope it'll never happen again, but I can't make any promises. As a small compensation, though, I'm willing to put whoever wants to be notified of future chapters when they come out on a mailing list of sorts. I've already got four requests, so I'll gladly take more. On the bright side of things, we have thirty-four reviews! Or we did the last time I checked, anyway. That's enough to fill two pages! And, no, I've never had that happen before, unlike SOME people.... ::looks over at T.Anjel:: The most I've ever gotten is fourteen.... Oh! We don't own CCS or any of the characters, except for the girls in the fan club, the coach, and Miyako, not that anyone would really want the former.  
  
T.Anjel: I also apologize for the delay of the chapter update. ::tears pour down her eyes:: I'm so sorry! What could I do to make it up to YOU?! You've all been so kind! Reviewing and reading and writing all this nice stuff! ::wipes tears:: I promise that the next chapter will be out sooner. That is a promise to you!   
  
Summary: Sakura tries out for the soccer team. (Not very long, is it?) (Hmph!)  
  
Hooded- Chapter 4- Competition and Fans  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Later that evening Sakura walked back along the dimming streets of Tokyo to her apartment building. She climbed up the steps and reached into her coat pocket, searching for the key to open the main doors. Finally finding it, after trying a few others, she pushed open the old door with a loud screech and started up the narrow flight of stairs to the second floor, where the apartment she shared with Miyako was. She walked down the hall to the apartment, and, checking the number to make sure it was the right one, starting checking her keys again for the correct one.  
  
After she'd tried two the key worked, and she opened the door and trudged through the main room into their shared room.  
  
"Dinner's ready, Sakura-san!" Miyako called out from the kitchen. Her only reply was loud bang of the door.   
  
She walked across the faded orange carpet, thinking how ugly it looked with the pink bedding, absentmindedly noticing that she'd forgotten to take her shoes off. She plopped onto the nearest bed, not minding if it was hers or Miyako's, and threw her school bag on the floor. She knew she should start on her homework, but she had another day to do it; it could wait. Besides, she had more important things on her mind.  
  
Like Daidouji Tomoyo. After forcing her to call her "Tomoyo-chan" they'd started talking about why she was in Tokyo, disguised as a boy. Tomoyo was of course doing most of the talking, but Sakura was wheedled into telling "Tomoyo-chan" about the case. Sakura didn't tell her the full details of course, but told her the basic outline of it.   
Another thing on her mind was the third death. She hadn't been able to fulfill her duty, which stung her deeply, but worse than that was the fact that another family had been forced to suffer. It wasn't right, and she had to find a way to stop the murders soon.  
  
Just as she started to really get into her thoughts, Miyako knocked on the door. "Sakura-san?" she asked as she pushed the door open a crack to peek inside. Upon seeing Sakura laying on a bed in the dark, still dressed in her school clothes, she entered. "Are you all right?" she asked gently, walking over to the bed.  
  
"Hai," replied Sakura, but Miyako could tell that she was telling the partial truth.  
  
"Hearing about the third case was pretty stressful, wasn't it," she said, trying to get another response from the girl. When she did nothing, Miyako said, "You'll probably feel better if you take off your uniform and change into something more comfortable."  
  
She was about to leave when Sakura said, "Someone knows."  
  
"Someone knows what?" Miyako asked, confused, turning to face Sakura.  
  
"Someone knows about me," Sakura clarified, continuing before Miyako could ask another question. "One of the boys - Hiiragizawa - has a girlfriend named Daidouji Tomoyo, the daughter of my mother's cousin. She figured it out and offered to help us with finding the murderer."  
  
Miyako digested this for a while. "I supposed that's good," she said slowly, "so long as she doesn't tell anyone who you are. How exactly is she going to help us?"  
  
Sakura sighed. "Her mother's the owner of Daidouji Toy Company, so she has access to a lot of technology; she's going to do a search for possible people." They stayed in silence for a few minutes, each thinking their own thoughts, until Sakura jolted Miyako out of hers, saying, "Could you leave me alone for a while, Miyako-san? It's been a long day for me, and I'd like to think things over."  
  
"No problem," Miyako said. "I'm going to have to tell the station about Daidouji Tomoyo. You know that, right?"  
  
"Hai," Sakura replied. Miyako nodded to her and left, closing the door after her.  
  
When Miyako left, Sakura got up off the bed and turned on a lamp, throwing the room into distinct relief. She then pulled her uniform's shirt over her head without even unbuttoning it and threw it on the floor. Then she slowly unbound her breasts, suddenly glad that one more annoyance was gone. She hadn't even noticed it during the day, but all of a sudden it itched terribly. Probably kept them bound for too long, Sakura thought as she pulled on a bra and a loose plaid shirt. She then took off her shoes, throwing them over to the doorway as a reminder to put them away later, then pulled off her uniform's pants, replacing them with faded jeans.  
  
After she'd grabbed a pair of slippers and put them on, Sakura laid back down on her bed and thought. She tried the push thoughts of her failure away to think of the positive stuff, finally resting her mind on how she was going to try out for the soccer team. She'd asked Tomoyo when the next practice was, and she'd said that it was the next day, so she had better be prepared.  
  
Sakura went through what she'd need to do to be prepared for tomorrow, and grabbed her gym uniform from her closet - which Miyako had filled with clothing while she'd been away - and stuffed it into her school bag. She made a mental note to tell Miyako that she'd be staying after school tomorrow, and then, without even glancing at her homework, went into the kitchen and got some food.  
  
When Sakura was going back to the room Miyako looked up from her stack of papers and said, in proper guardian manner, "Don't forget to do your homework."  
  
"Hai, hai," Sakura, nodding at Miyako in confirmation until Miyako returned to her work.  
  
Upon getting back to the room Sakura ate her food without even tasting it, placed her empty dishes on the nearby nightstand, lay back down on the bed, and continued to think until she slowly drifted into a dreamless sleep, still fully clothed.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The next day Miyako shook Sakura awake, ignoring that she hadn't changed out of her casual clothing. Sakura grumbled and got up, binding her breasts extra tight, even though it hurt, so that they wouldn't come undone while she tried out, and pulled on her uniform, getting her shoes from the door as she went and brushing her hair quickly.  
  
After both Sakura and Miyako had gotten ready and eaten - with Miyako telling Sakura that she was in charge of supper - they left, walking quickly to get to the school on time.  
  
When they got to the school they parted, Miyako going to wherever teachers went, and Sakura going to the lockers to change shoes and put her things away. After she'd done that she went to her classroom and sat down in her desk, noting that Hiiragizawa was already in his and smiling at her eerily.  
  
"Ohayo gozaimasu, Sonogi-san," Hiiragizawa greeted.  
  
"Ohayo," Sakura replied quickly.  
  
Sakura gave him a small polite smile and checked her schedule for what class she had, getting out the appropriate items.  
  
The school day dragged on without any remorse. By the end of the school day, Sakura had a handprint molded into the side of her cheek, but there was no time for naps. She had to try out for the soccer team. The last teacher left the room and boys scuttled about, ready to go home, play, or go to clubs and practices.  
  
"It's great that you're trying out for the soccer team, Karaku-san, ne, Li-san?" Hiiragizawa said, walking alongside Sakura and Li as they headed towards the back of the school where the soccer field was located.   
  
Li just snorted in reply.   
  
When she got to the gym, there was already a group of boys there, in practice uniforms, and the gym teacher. The uniforms had white tops and black bottoms, with black writing on the tops listing the number player on both sides, the team on the front, and the surname on the back. The shorts also had the team's name written in white on them. The socks went up to the players' knees and were white with a black stripe along the top. Sakura took the long bulge in the front of the socks to be shin guards, since those bones were constantly bombarded during soccer and had little protection from skin. The players also wore black cleats so that they could get easier purchase on the ground.  
  
In the locker room, Eriol and Syaoran went to their lockers and changed without a word. Sakura looked hesitantly around and quickly slipped into a bathroom stall with her gym clothes. She had long sweats to cover her slim, feminine legs and an extremely loose T-shirt. After changing, Sakura slid out of the stall.   
  
"What's wrong with changing out here, Karaku-san?" Eriol asked as Sakura came out of the stall. He and Li had apparently been waiting for her.  
  
Sakura sweatdropped. "Aa...just out of habit I guess," Sakura replied. Hiiragizawa just smiled and led the way out of the locker room. Sakura sighed heavily, hoping he didn't notice.   
  
Walking out into the field Sakura was greeted by a blinding sun and a mass of screeching females on the bleachers. "This happens to be our wonderful fan club." Hiiragizawa said in a tone, which Sakura couldn't determine to be sarcastic or not.  
  
Sakura winced and replied, "I didn't know they were this bad...." She shaded her eyes to look over at the bleachers. She noticed Miyako sitting over in a shaded, back corner studiously doing paperwork while glancing over at the girls every now and then, looking for possible suspects. Down on the other side of the bleachers, nearer the school, she saw Tomoyo, who waved. She smiled and waved back slightly, then turned her attention to the fans.  
  
They shouldn't be called a fan club, she thought, taking in the girls shouting and waving banners featuring their Cutest Player of the Month, they should be called a fanatic club.  
  
There were about thirty girls, all dressed up wearing the team's colors and trying to get the boys' attention. A few were even wearing custom-made cheerleader uniforms and executing twirls, jumps, and chants in front of the bleachers. The girls were a buzzing hive of activity, and when the team had come out, they had started to call out the names of their favorite players, a few even trying to run out and grab them, only being restrained by their fellow fans.  
  
"See that one over there, in the middle?" asked Hiiragizawa, pointing at a girl with curly platinum hair who was decked out from top to toe in black and white. Her hair had streamers of each color coming from small pigtails on the top of her head, and her entire outfit was made up of the two colors. Sakura guessed that if it wouldn't have ruined her make-up, she'd have covered her face in the colors also. She was waving a banner that proclaimed that she loved Li Syaoran in hiragana, katakana, kanji, and even romanization, with a large picture of him on it.  
  
"LI-KUN! AISHTERU! LI-KUN! KYAAA!!!" Sakura noticed her voice above all others. It was a high-pitched squeal, which could have caused anyone to be deaf. Sakura glanced quickly over at Li, who was leaning casually on the bleachers, and saw that he looked most disgusted at the obsessive fan club.   
  
"You mean the one obsessed with Li-san?" she asked dryly.  
  
"That would be her," Hiiragizawa said. "She's the president of the fan club. Apparently she's so obsessed with Li-san that she made her own posters of him and has a whole website dedicated to him. Quite scary, actually."  
  
"You mean she's the one who sets this whole thing up?" Sakura asked incredulously.  
  
"Hai," Eriol replied, shaking his head in amusement.  
  
"Wow." It took her a minute to digest the reality of the fan club.  
  
"Karaku-san!"   
  
Sakura swiveled her head around in reply and saw Tomoyo on the low bleachers on the other side of the field from the fan club. She waved.   
  
Eriol casually walked over to Tomoyo, seeing that the coach wasn't ready for practice at the moment. He gently bent down to give Tomoyo a soft peck on the cheek, then sat next to her, making sure not to sit on the video camera, which lay beside her. Sakura made her way to them too.   
  
"Hello Daidouji-san," Sakura said in a low voice, feeling a bit nervous around Tomoyo.  
  
"Hello Karaku-san," she replied, smiling.  
  
Tomoyo should have been an actress. Nowhere on her face was Sakura able to tell that she knew anything about her.   
  
"They seem to be overdoing it a little today," Tomoyo observed.   
  
Overdoing it a little? Sakura thought. That is an understatement.   
  
"Hiiragizawa! Sonogi! We're starting!" a teammate shouted towards the bleachers.   
  
Eriol and Sakura left Tomoyo on the bleachers and headed to the small crowd gathered at the sidelines.   
  
The team turned to the coach, who called out orders for the group to split into two teams. "Now, Sonogi, we're splitting up into two teams so that we can practice as if it's a real game, all right?" When Sakura nodded, he continued. "It's just like regular soccer, which I presume you've played before, since you're trying out. Since everyone here already is in the game, and you're the only trying out, I'll see your performance today and determine whether you're qualified to be on the team or not." When Sakura nodded, he ushered the teams out onto the field.  
  
The soccer team seemed to have automatically chosen sides. One half wore loose jerseys over their uniforms, and the other half didn't. Without any orders, the two split teams jogged over to the field.  
  
Sakura's team was on the north side of the field, and her position was offense. She noticed that Hiiragizawa was on her team as defense and that Li was on the other team's defense. She allowed herself to smirk slightly; they wouldn't know what was coming.  
  
Team one, Li's team, got the ball first, and when the coach blew the whistle Sakura dashed over to the other side of the field, waiting for the ball to come her way. The team members played around for a while, shuffling their feet and dutifully following the ball as it was dribbled and kicked, but showing a definite lack of skill, until Hiiragizawa got over and kicked it straight over to the waiting offensive members of team two. It crossed the mid-line at the opposite side of the field from Sakura and the players on her team started to drive it over to the goal, looking successful until Li stopped them in their tracks. He blocked and shot it over toward his team's offensive people, but Sakura intercepted it mid-way and passed it to another person on her team, who victoriously shot it into the goal net, gaining a point.  
  
As they marched back to the center line Li gave Sakura a glare, his amber eyes lighting up in a challenge at being bested, even if momentarily.  
  
When they lined up again they switched positions, with Hiiragizawa and Li being offense while Sakura was defense. Taking advantage of the slight lull in the game Sakura took a chance to look over at the bleachers again.   
  
Miyako glanced down at her paper, which she was seemingly writing in. It was blank with messy scribbling all over it. She kept a watchful eye over Sakura who seemed to be inwardly enjoying herself. Miyako smirked. She was a good kid, but went through a lot. That was nothing to deny. Miyako sighed and looked over at the ecstatic fan girls who seemed to be in their own swooning worlds of fantasy.   
  
But peering in closer, Miyako noticed one particular girl who wasn't swooning or had pumping, little red hearts for eyes. She wasn't even dressed in white and black.   
  
Miyako slightly frowned, examining the girl thoroughly. The girl had thin, brittle brown hair, which was messily tied back with a rubberband. She was dressed in a worn out brown jacket, and she continually glared at the soccer players. She seemed more or less like an enemy rather than a fan. She sat, hunched, on the bleachers, resting her chin in her hands. Her eyes never left the field.   
  
Miyako glanced over at Sakura, and saw that she seemed to have noticed the girl too. Maybe she was watching her a little too much, because Sakura was suddenly slammed into the ground.   
  
Back down at the ground, Sakura looked up into angry amber eyes and realized that she must have not heard the whistle for them to start. Li got up and moved away from her as the coach moved toward her, looking angry.  
  
"Sonogi," the coach said, "you are supposed to listen for the whistle to start, not daydream, okay? If you want to join the team, you're going to have to be alert!" His voice was filled with thinly veiled annoyance, and Sakura nodded jerkily in response. "All right, let's start again, teams!" he called out, walking away. "And this time, Sonogi, please pay attention."  
  
When she got up off the ground she felt something under her shirt shift a little but ignored it, thinking it was nothing and that if she didn't heed the coach, her value to the team would be nothing.  
  
They walked back to their positions, the members giving her dirty looks at having gotten the coach worked up. Then the whistle sounded and the ball was kicked over to her side, Li taking control and driving it towards the goal. Sakura saw the goalie cringe a little at the approaching figure as his fellow players made attempt upon unsuccessful attempt to get the ball away from the Chinese boy.  
  
He's fast, Sakura thought keeping her eyes glued to his speeding figure. The ball by his feet was a disarray of black and white.   
  
Sakura made up her mind to prove herself to the coach and to get back at Li for knocking her over, and sprinted over to where Li was headed. Sprinted fast. She quickly hit the ball away from him, and he instantly responded by chasing it back down, determined to get it into the netting. Just as he was about to hit it into the goal Sakura slammed her foot into the ball when Li's did, causing the ball to fly up into the air. Li then hit the ball with his head, causing a multitude of squeals from the spectators, and again headed for the goal.  
  
Sakura, resolved to protect her dignity, followed, managing to worm her foot in front of Li's to send the ball wide to the other side of the field; meanwhile gravity had its effect upon her and pulled her down to the grass, dragging Li with her. He again glared at her as he got up, probably annoyed that she'd taken the ball from him again. As Sakura got up she heard the fan club scream even louder and turned around just in time to see the ball go straight into the other team's goal, the goalie narrowly missing it by less than a centimeter.  
  
Sakura smiled broadly and turned to get back into position, this time taking offense again. Li glared at her menacingly, and when the whistle sounded again she dashed over to the other side, waiting for the ball to come over to her.  
  
It took a few minutes for the players on the other side to get the ball over to her side, during which time she studied Li idly. He was pretty cute, she noticed, with his fierce amber eyes and chocolate brown hair. His practice uniform fit him nicely, too, even if an over-large jersey marred it. His eyes were trained on the ball and sweat glistened on his neck -  
  
What am I thinking? Sakura asked herself, horrified. I'm not supposed to be attracted to him! I'm supposed to protect him!  
  
But you could protect him better if you could get closer to him, couldn't you? inquired a sinister little voice in the back of her head.  
  
Iie! she exclaimed automatically. I can't allow myself to get distracted!  
  
Shaking her head to clear it of her thoughts she caught sight of the ball hurtling at her. Just in time, she thought.  
  
Stopping it with her foot she began to dribble the whirling mass of black and white at the goal. Adrenaline pumping through her veins she deftly dodged the people who tried to block her and was almost at the goal when Li kicked the ball astray. They both headed after it, hoping to take possession of it for their team's advantage. When Sakura blocked it and sent it to a teammate Li growled low in his throat and intercepted the pass between the receiver and another player, then sending it to one of his teammates. Sakura would block the following pass and send it off in a different direction, only to be blocked by Li indirectly. Whenever Li got the ball Sakura would eventually block.  
  
Sakura's full attention kept to the game. She barely noticed the retreating players of both teams. They all watched with rapt attention as Sakura and Li faced each other, one on one. Her cleats dug roughly into the grass, bringing up bits of dirt as she ran.   
  
Syaoran dribbled the ball, keeping close to it. His eyes were narrowed in concentration, keeping one on the ball and one on Sonogi. Who knew there was someone this good? It'd been years since he actually had such a challenge. It was exciting and somewhat new. I can't let him beat me, Syaoran thought without mercy.   
  
Sakura ran close to Li, trying to get close enough to steal the ball. They were nearing the goal. "GyaA!!" Sakura yelled with effort, and intentionally slid on the grass, her feet first. She aimed them at the ball, which Li had left unguarded for point one seconds to prepare for his kick into the goal. Yes! Sakura thought with success as she managed to kick the ball away from Li. She quickly got up from the grass and ran for the ball. Li got there first, and with an angry shout he slammed the ball into the goal - and the president actually fainted in awe of what her future betrothed had done.  
  
With a loud shriek the coach blew the whistle, causing everyone in the immediate vicinity to try to cover their ears, and marched over to where Sakura and Li were trying to catch their breath, his face contorted in an attempt to decide between anger or pride. He ultimately decided on pride and beamed at the two youths.  
  
"Well done, well done!" he called as he neared them. When he reached them he patted each heartily on the back, almost pitching Sakura into the ground and making something move in her shirt. Sakura's chest suddenly itched terribly, and she shifted in an attempt to make it stop, only succeeding in drawing the coach's attention to her shirt. "Now, Sonogi, I know that it's almost the end of the year...but... -" The coach paused, raising his eyebrows at Sakura's fidgeting movement.  
  
Sakura looked down and tried to cover a blush. The end of her binding was sticking out from under her shirt, and a slight bump was visible on her upper chest if you looked closely. She hunched her shoulders quickly, trying to cover it. "Nothing. Um...may I please use the restroom? I really have to go." She looked at the coach pleadingly, who gave in. As if to answer the coach's questioning stare, Sakura mumbled, "It's a bandage. I have a small wound on my stomach…." Without waiting for a sympathetic or worried reply, Sakura hurried off into the locker room.   
  
Unfortunately, the constant jolting produced by running only made it unwind more, and by the time she reached the safety of the building she could feel it creating a small pool around her waist.  
  
Kuso, she thought as she entered the locker room and pulled her shirt over her head. It probably came loose during the day and started coming undone while I was playing. She recalled bumping into Li a few times and feeling something shift under her shirt. It was probably then. Well, if I'm able to join the soccer team, I'll just have to make sure it's extra tight before I start.  
  
Unwinding the tape slowly she looked at it and saw that it was almost useless. Oh, well, if I'm careful it'll do until I get back to the apartment. Going over to the only mirror in the room she started putting it back on, tucking the final edge in deliberately so that it wouldn't come out. When she was done she surveyed her work, turning to make sure that it looked flat. Nodding her head in determination she pulled her shirt back over her head and jogged back out to the patiently waiting coach and team.  
  
"All right. Now that you're back, Sonogi, I'd like to offer you a position on the team. I know that it's a little late in the year to be adding on members, but you're the only person I've seen that's able to keep up with Li on the soccer field. Do you accept?" He looked at her proudly, almost certain of her answer. If she didn't want to join, why would she have tried out?  
  
"I accept a position on the team gladly. When do I start?" Sakura smiled a little as the coach grinned, glad that she had agreed.  
  
"Starting immediately, and I'll have to get a uniform for you.... What's your number?"  
  
Sakura thought about it for a second, then answered, "Twenty, if it's not already taken." She let out a small smile. Twenty was the number of the most recent boy who was murdered. She planned to wear his number in his name. For him. To apologize and to honor him as best she could.   
  
"Aa…," the coach paused, sighing. "It is free," he said, pronouncing each syllable with care. "He would have been proud to have known you wore his number."  
  
Sakura nodded in comprehension and tried not to burst into tears, something she wasn't able to get full control of no matter how hard she tried.  
  
The coach let out a heavy sigh. "Well, I'll have uniforms for you by next practice, which is in two days. You'll come to practice every day of each week unless you are notified otherwise, and you'll be notified of games at least a week beforehand."  
  
"Hai."  
  
"Good. Now, team, go in and change!"  
  
With a chorus of acknowledgments the group of young men went through the gym into the locker rooms. They chattered as they exchanged their practice uniforms for school uniforms to be worn until they got home. Sakura took advantage of the separate shower cubicles - which had curtains - to change, hoping that no one would notice. When she exited she grabbed her stuff and was about to leave when Hiiragizawa fell into step beside her.  
  
"Congratulations, Sonogi-san! I've never seen anyone on the teams in our division able to keep up with Li-san, so you must be very good if you can." He smiled at her, inviting her to smile with him.  
  
Sakura allowed herself to smile a little and said, "Arigatou, Hiiragizawa-san. I'm glad that you think I'm good, though my skills were a little rusty. I haven't played soccer in a while."  
  
Hiiragizawa's mouth fell open, remaining that way until he remembered that it wasn't polite and shut it. "You're...rusty?! What'll you be like when you're completely warmed up?"  
  
Sakura shrugged and walked out of the room, wanting to get home quickly so that she could talk to Miyako and change into more comfortable clothes.  
  
Sakura walked through the school to the front and saw Miyako and Tomoyo waiting at the front gate. Grinning, she ran the ways over to the gate, glad that they had waited, even if Tomoyo was probably waiting for Hiiragizawa.  
  
"Congratulations!" Miyako exclaimed and pulled her into a big hug. "I'm so glad that you got onto the soccer team."  
  
"Arigatou." Sakura turned to Tomoyo and smiled.  
  
Not wanting to seem unfriendly, Tomoyo hugged Sakura tightly, first making sure that no one was around, and whispered, "I'm glad, Sakura-chan." When she pulled back she slipped something into her pocket, which Sakura was pretty sure was a note.  
  
Turning so that she was able to face both of them she said, "Let me introduce you to each other. Konishi-sensei, this is Daidouji Tomoyo. Daidouji-san, this is Konishi Miyako." Leaning closer to Miyako she said, "Miyako-san, she's the one helping us with the investigation." Miyako nodded and turned to Tomoyo, smiling.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Daidouji-san. I'm very glad that you'll be helping us."  
  
"Likewise, Konishi-sensei." Tomoyo smiled at Miyako and then turned towards the pair of boys coming out of the building. Running up to the darker haired of the two she exclaimed, "Eriol-san!" They embraced and then closed the distance between the two groups, holding hands.  
  
"Congratulations again, Sonogi-san," Eriol said as he neared them. "And who is this?" he asked, looking at Miyako oddly.  
  
"Hiiragizawa-san, Li-san, this is Konishi Miyako, the aunt who I'm staying with. She's actually a new teacher here. Konishi-sensei, Hiiragizawa Eriol and Li Syaoran. They're two of the best players on the soccer team."  
  
"And now you're one of them as well," Eriol reminded her, smiling happily. Suddenly realizing that Li hadn't said anything, he nudged him with an elbow. "Li-san, shouldn't you congratulate Sonogi-san on his new placement in the team?"  
  
In response Li grunted, not even looking up at Sakura. Sakura shrugged; she hadn't expected anything else.  
  
"I think we need to be heading home," Miyako said, gently prodding Sakura to leave.  
  
Sakura nodded and turned to them. "I'll see you later, Hiiragizawa-san, Li-san, Daidouji-san." She waved as she walked away with Miyako.  
  
Just as she reached the street Tomoyo called out, "Sonogi-san, I'll make sure to tell the fan club your name for next month's vote!" Sakura shook her head slightly and continued walking, catching up to Miyako.  
  
When they'd reached the safety of the apartment Miyako turned to her. "Did you see anyone suspicious there?"  
  
Sakura plopped down onto the couch, tired after the long tryout. "Only one person, a spectator. The girl you were looking at in the middle of the game."  
  
"The one that was in the fan club, ne?" Miyako inquired. "The only one that wasn't cheering."  
  
Sakura nodded.  
  
"We'll see what happens. She seems the most suspicious, so we'll keep an eye on her. And we'll see about any others that may come along the way," Miyako said, not too disappointed on the slow process of getting to the solution.   
  
We're going too slow! Sakura criticized silently to herself. We're too laid back! I'm not focusing enough on the case! "Hai," she managed to say aloud to Miyako.   
  
She took one look at her friend, who had plopped down on the couch doing paperwork, and went back into their room, turning on the light and shedding her clothes as she entered. After taking off the tape she pulled on some loose gray sweat pants and an overlarge T-shirt, falling onto the bed in a collapse of exhaustion.  
  
Eventually she summoned the strength to get up and start her homework, knowing that if she didn't get it done - and done properly - she'd get in trouble with her teachers, Miyako, and the soccer coach, getting kicked off the team.  
  
Halfway through her Math assignment she remembered that Tomoyo had stuck something in her pocket earlier. Glad for an excuse to postpone her homework she dug around in her uniform's pockets and found a small folded piece of paper inside of one. She sat back down on the bed and unfolded it slowly, watching as the dark violet ink was revealed.  
  
Haikei Sakura-chan,  
  
I'm very glad that you made the soccer team (I knew you would!). Now Eriol-san will have someone else to complain about bettering him, and Li-san will have someone to compete with. I ran a search for possible suspects and came up with a small idea that may be of help to you. I'll be at the teahouse on Sunday at four.   
  
Keigu,  
  
Daidouji Tomoyo  
  
Sakura smiled and folded the note back up. She'd meet Tomoyo on Sunday, and in the meantime she'd look for more clues and try to keep her guard up. After all, she'd never forgive herself if she failed the boys again.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Well, it's longer than the last chapter, but took over two weeks to write.... How do I do that? Well, if you want notification of new chapters, put it in your review or e-mail us. Reviews, comments, questions, flames all welcome in reviews or at crystal_anjel@yahoo.com. Arigatou for reading! 


	6. Kyoto Prefectural Nanyo Senior High Scho...

T.Anjel: I have conquered my goal! Not quite sure what C-Mage's goal was¼but I think this chapter was done in a week! YahoO! Arigatou for all those reviews as always! You guys warm my heart.  
  
C-Mage: Okay, I have no idea how long this chapter took to get out, but at least it's out! I may get it up at the same time as chapter four. Maybe. Depends on if FFN lets me. Anyway, arigatou for all your reviews, and I'll try to get the next one out as soon as possible!  
  
Disclaimers: CCS belongs to Clamp. Period.  
  
Summary: Tomoyo does more investigating and the soccer team has an unexpected rival.  
  
Hooded Chapter 5- Kyoto Prefectural Nanyo Senior High School  
  
Sakura woke up early on Sunday. The tiring practices, endless homework, and crime work had been rewarded with six hours of sleep. It was enough. For the majority of the day Sakura spent her time hunched over her maple desk, trying to put her small bits of information and suspicions together.  
  
"Sakura-san!" Miyako called from the entrance of the room.  
  
Sakura looked up from her work. "Hai?"  
  
"I have a meeting with some members of the police today," Miyako said and looked at her watch. It was two o'clock. "I'll be back around six. If you need anything, call."  
  
Sakura nodded. "I will. Sayonara."  
  
Miyako waved and left their shared room. Sakura heard the door of the apartment click softly shut.  
  
Without further due, Sakura resumed in her work. Occasionally Sakura would find some small bits of useful information, which the police figured out, in the mail. Together, some pieces fit, but sometimes other bits of information didn't. Those were the things that got Sakura so frustrated that she pulled ruthlessly at her short hair.  
  
A loud beeping noise rang in Sakura's ears, breaking her from her concentrated thoughts. 3:30. With a loud sigh, Sakura readied herself to go out. She bound her breasts tightly and found loose jeans and a dark T- shirt in her bureau. Slipping her keys into her pocket, Sakura left the apartment, hoping to have more information given to her that day.  
  
I'm early, Sakura thought, looking at her watch. It was only 3:45. She was supposed to meet Tomoyo at the teahouse at four. Her sneakers glided over the cement on her way to the teahouse. No matter how tired she felt, she was not able to sleep.  
  
"Sonogi-san!"  
  
Sakura turned around at the call of the familiar name. She was already in the teahouse. When she had gotten there, she didn't know. "You're early, Daidouji-san," Sakura responded respectfully after seating herself across from Tomoyo at the table. She quickly placed an order and resumed in keeping her attention on Tomoyo. "Is there anything that you have, Daidouji-san?" Sakura asked.  
  
Tomoyo grinned. She loved the suspense that she knew she put Sakura through. "Iie," Tomoyo said. "Anyone could have done it."  
  
Sakura's energy drained from her. What was she doing here? What was Tomoyo doing?  
  
Tomoyo continued as if she didn't see Sakura's downfall in hope. "I brought a little something that you might be able to find useful."  
  
Sakura watched Tomoyo dig into her hand-knit bag and take out a crumpled piece of paper. It was yellow with age and crinkled at the slightest movement. Tomoyo handed it to Sakura with care.  
  
Sakura's eyes widened to twice their usual size. A list! A list of names! All of them on the soccer team. This is it! Sakura's heart rate doubled. This is the break I've been waiting for! The first three names on the list were checked off with blotchy black ink. Sakura looked happily up at Tomoyo from the list.  
  
Tomoyo smiled back. "I got it checked for fingerprints. There were none."  
  
Sakura nodded. "Where did you find it?"  
  
"Where the fan club sits, on the bleachers," Tomoyo said, grinning slyly. "After you tried out, I quickly checked out the bleachers and found this. It must have come from one of their pockets."  
  
"Arigatou! Arigatou gozaimasu, Daidouji-san!" Sakura cried out happily.  
  
Tomoyo just smiled calmly at Sakura. Sakura-chan changed, Tomoyo thought silently to herself as she watched Sakura drink her tea with joy. She's colder and more distant. She has ice around her heart, and I just wish I could melt it.  
  
"Daijoubu desu ka?" Sakura asked worriedly.  
  
"I'm okay," Tomoyo said, smiling reassuringly. "Ah. Sonogi-san. I'm going to join the fan club to do a little more inside investigating."  
  
Sakura's smile faded. "You're doing too much, Daidouji-san. You're going to end up getting hurt. Promise me you're not going to join the fan club. Onegai, Daidouji-san." Sakura's eyes were slightly glazed over.  
  
Tomoyo looked hesitant in her answer. "...Hai." She saw that Sakura's eyes had "de-glazed" after her reply. What was that? Tomoyo thought in worry.  
  
"Arigatou." Sakura glanced at her watch. "I better get back home. Arigatou, Daidouji-san."  
  
"No problem, Sonogi-san," Tomoyo replied softly and watched Sakura's back as she walked out of the teahouse. I've only seen Sakura for a little while, and I can already tell that she isolated herself from people. Tomoyo sighed. Sakura-chan.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sakura wiped the sweat from her brow. Practice that day was tiring and the fan club seemed livelier than ever. She even noticed a new banner amongst their bunch. One of her.  
  
"Before you wash up!" the coach called over the relieved chatter of the boys. "We have our big game tomorrow! Remember." The coach's voice trailed off as he looked at Sakura, daydreaming, just like every other time he began to make his speeches of doing your best and winning against the opposing school. "Come to the school at seven tomorrow morning!" the coach said, bringing Sakura back from her daze. "I want bags, uniforms, and everything ready by seven! We're going leave on the dot, so if you're not there, you might as well stay home in your snuggly little beds! Dismissed!"  
  
"Is the fan club coming too?" Sakura asked Hiiragizawa on their way out of the field.  
  
"They always manage somehow," Hiiragizawa said, shaking his head.  
  
Arakawa Kensuke. Sakura saw him. He was one of the better-looking boys on the team. He was the next one on the list, too. Sakura had memorized the list from name to name in order. The killer seemingly killed them in order according to her list, so Sakura might as well watch the boy who was probably next.  
  
He was tall and had a very mature, chiseled face. He was one of those boys who could make any girl swoon by just passing her. Li Syaoran was also one of those boys, but didn't take it to his advantage like Arakawa did. Sakura swallowed her pride and strode up to Arakawa Kensuke, leaving Hiiragizawa and Li in the dust.  
  
"Konnichiwa, Arakawa-san," Sakura said, keeping in step with the boy.  
  
"Konnichiwa, Sonogi-san," Kensuke replied, giving a shining-white smile to Sakura.  
  
Sakura swallowed visibly, but covered it up by asking a question. "Are you nervous?"  
  
"About the game?"  
  
Sakura nodded.  
  
"A bit. And if we win, we'll have millions of girls asking for my autograph!" Kensuke's eyes turned into pumping hearts and he gave a devilish smile. Sakura sweatdropped. His ego was bigger than what he probably could safely handle.  
  
"Ah..ha...," was Sakura's only audible reply.  
  
Kensuke stopped walking towards the locker room and peered closely into Sakura's face. Sakura sweatdropped some more and backed off. "Hmmm," Kensuke said, scratching his chin. "You're cute."  
  
Sakura facevaulted straight into the ground. "NANI?!"  
  
"You will be a wonderful assistant in attracting young and wanting females!" Kensuke said. He stared lazily at Sakura and twirled a rose in his fingers. "Too bad Li-san didn't want to join me. He would have been the perfect man."  
  
"Kuso. Shut up, you damn gaki!" Li shouted from inside the locker room.  
  
"He doesn't want to put his good looks to their best use!" Kensuke pouted and leaned his chin on his hand. "What a shame."  
  
Sakura leaned on the cold concrete wall, not believing that such a boy was the one she was planning to stick to throughout the next few days. She gave a heavy sigh and quickly said good-bye to the strange Arakawa boy, Hiiragizawa, and Li. She hurried off home where she would properly change out of the bonds and guy-ish clothing, which she had so gotten used to.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Syaoran watched Sonogi go off into the town. Why did he always watch him? That thought haunted Syaoran ever since the first time he caught himself doing so.  
  
"Ah, Li-kun!" Eriol said, smiling mischievously. "Could it be that there is an attraction to Sonogi-san that you have?"  
  
"Nani?!" Syaoran yelled. "Iie!"  
  
"Then why do you always stare off after him, ne?" Eriol asked, smirking.  
  
"There's something weird about him," Syaoran growled back in response. Hiiragizawa was so damn nosy.  
  
"What's so weird?" Eriol asked, putting on his shirt.  
  
Syaoran said nothing and headed off into the showers. Hot water poured mercilessly onto Syaoran's face and lean chest. Was he gay? Was he really attracted to that Sonogi? He had no disrespect for gay males, but he had never in his whole life expected himself to be one.  
  
"Kami-sama.what am I going to do?"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sakura stared aimlessly outside the window. The trees and highway passed by in a rush of blur, but she didn't see them. Her mind was clouded with her thoughts. The bus driving the soccer team to who-knows-where drove steadily on the road without traffic. Miyako was on the bus too. She managed to come along as a teacher assisting on the trip.  
  
"How does it feel, Sonogi-san?" Hiiragizawa asked suddenly from the seat beside her.  
  
"Nani?" Sakura asked dully, not quite paying attention to him.  
  
"That we're going to your old school," Hiiragizawa stated simply.  
  
"NANI?!" Sakura yelled, giving Hiiragizawa her full and utmost attention.  
  
Hiiragizawa sweatdropped. "You don't pay attention to the coach very much, do you, Sonogi-san? We're versing Kyoto Prefectural Nanyo High tomorrow afternoon."  
  
Sakura jumped from her seat to the front where Miyako was sitting patiently, talking with the coach. "Karaku-kun!" Miyako said in surprise after seeing Sakura pop out in front of her. "What's wrong?"  
  
"We're going to Kyoto?" Sakura asked, growling so low that only Miyako could, and just barely.  
  
"You didn't know?" Miyako asked in awe.  
  
"You didn't tell me! What am I going to do?! What if someone recognizes me?!" Sakura hissed.  
  
"It will be fine. Don't worry. You're not going to interact with any of the students. You're just going to play. It will be all right," Miyako said soothingly.  
  
Sakura only nodded, knowing she was getting odd glances from her defiant coach. She shakily sat back in her seat and rocked back and forth. She gnawed at the collar of her T-shirt, and nervously looked around the bus. What am I going to do? Sakura thought in hysterically.  
  
"Daijoubu?" Hiiragizawa asked worriedly.  
  
"I'm fine," Sakura replied slowly, color draining from her face. "Is this game mandatory?" she asked.  
  
"Well, it's a pretty big game, being that it's out of Tokyo," Eriol replied. "The coach will definitely have you and Li-kun in for most of the time."  
  
Sakura let out a heavy sigh. What she was going to do was still to come.  
  
With Sakura's hectic thinking, the bus seemed to arrive in less than a minute in Kyoto. The coach stood up in the front of the bus, silencing the members of the team. "The game is tomorrow at twelve," the coach announced. "It is five right now. I want you all to check into your rooms and have a good night's rest. This is the biggest game we've ever had in years! I want you to do your best tomorrow!"  
  
Sakura breathed heavily and was the last one out of the bus. "Ah...Konishi- sensei."  
  
Miyako smiled and heaved Sakura's bag over her shoulder. "You go meet your family tonight and get back to the hotel by ten. I'll check you in and tell the coach you went to greet relatives," Miyako whispered quietly.  
  
Sakura smiled. "Arigatou." Without another word, Sakura ran off down the block until she was out of the view of her teammates. She quickly noticed the familiar streets and stores of Kyoto. Her house wasn't that far from the hotel. She quickly walked down one block and another until she noticed the familiar white house in the quiet neighborhood. After seeing the house again, Sakura realized just how much she missed her family and her old life.  
  
Before she knew it, Sakura was standing inches from the door. All she had to do was knock. With a deep breath, Sakura raised her fist to the door. Before she knocked, the door flung open. Fujitaka stood there, a look of surprise at the newcomer.  
  
"Otou-san.," Sakura whispered.  
  
Fujitaka stared at the boy on his porch and quickly realized the familiarity of his eyes and auburn hair. "Sakura-chan!" Without a moment's hesitation, he embraced his daughter into his arms. "I missed you."  
  
"I missed you too," Sakura replied, hugging her father back.  
  
"Is it over?" Fujitaka asked, looking into Sakura's eyes.  
  
Sakura shook her head. "I'm here for the soccer game between my old school and the school I'm going to now."  
  
"Wouldn't that be a problem?" Fujitaka asked worriedly.  
  
Sakura shrugged. "I'm hoping no one would recognize me.ah! Onii-san!"  
  
Touya stood behind his father, wondering whom the guest at the front door was. "Sakura-chan?"  
  
Sakura gave her supporting older brother a hug, expressing how much she missed him. He gently hugged her back, relief of her safety being released. Father, son, and daughter made their way inside the house to talk of their past weeks without each other. Sakura allowed herself to enjoy the time she spent, but made sure not to be over-expressive of her thoughts.  
  
"I should be getting back," Sakura said, looking at her watch. It was nine.  
  
"We'll be at the game," Fujitaka promised.  
  
Sakura nodded.  
  
"I'll drive you to your hotel," Touya offered in a demanding tone.  
  
"Daijoubu," Sakura said, declining the offer. "I need some fresh air anyway. Oyasumi-nasai." Sakura bowed and turned to leave the house.  
  
"Take your time in Tokyo," Fujitaka said before Sakura exited the house. "Those boys need you."  
  
Sakura nodded and left, shutting the door softly behind her.  
  
"How long do you expect Sakura to actually take for the case?" Touya asked his father.  
  
"They're doing something to her," Fujitaka replied. "Didn't you see? Sakura was more open of her feelings."  
  
"Aa...."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sakura slept in her bindings. How she managed to sleep next to a boy, Kensuke to be specific, was a wonder. She woke up hours earlier than any of the other boys in her room and took a quick shower, savoring the short amount of time she had without her bindings and boyish glamour.  
  
Breakfast was quick and simple and the school wasn't far away, so they walked there. Sakura lagged behind, becoming increasingly nervous about the game, her identity and even about the case. Had she been spending enough time on the case? It seemed that all she did was hang around her new "friends" from school. Was she slacking off? She hoped not.  
  
"Sakura-chan?" a voice called out from behind the group.  
  
Sakura made sure not to turn around. C'mon, Sakura, she thought desperately to herself. Get a grip.  
  
"Sakura-chan!" the voice repeated. Sakura heard rushing footsteps and a hand grabbed her shoulder. "Sa.,"  
  
Sakura turned around, glaring slightly at the girl who grabbed her. She hoped to look intimidating and more like a boy.  
  
"Ah! Gomen nasai!" the girl said, quickly bowing again and again at Sakura. Sakura just turned away and walked along with the group. Gomen, Chiharu- chan, Sakura apologized silently, having recognized her classmate's face.  
  
Sakura quickly tried to avoid familiar faces of the school once they got inside. Sakura kept her head low and avoided everyone's eyes. Her emerald eyes weren't very common and could have been quickly recognized by anyone. It was a miracle Chiharu didn't.  
  
"I think I saw Kinomoto-san." "Was that Sakura-chan?" "There's someone who looks like Sakura-san." Sakura heard them all, and she prayed that none of her soccer teammates did. Will Hiiragizawa and Li find it weird that none of the students in the school know me? That I look like a girl that used to go here? Sakura thought wildly.  
  
The blinding sun in her eyes cut off Sakura's thoughts. There's no time to think about people recognizing me, Sakura thought, beginning to stretch. Let me just finish off this game and get this case over with.  
  
"Kawaii!" Kensuke squealed, staring off at the student-covered bleachers. "This school has such cute girls!"  
  
Sakura just nodded. "Ah.the fan club is here.," Her statement was supported by the screaming of girls dressed in black and white. They were cheering and crying out at the team almost hysterically. Sakura frowned. She was there again. That girl. The quiet one. Sakura noted to keep an eye out for her.  
  
"Sonogi! Li! Hiiragizawa! Arakawa! Hui!..," the coach trailed on. "You're starting off in ten minutes."  
  
Sakura stretched out some more. "Sakura! Sakura!" someone whispered from the bleachers above the noise of the crowd. Sakura craned her neck around slowly. Kuso. it was him. The one boy that Sakura was aware of in her old school that was totally in love with her. Ryu. "Sakura-san!" he said aloud.  
  
Sakura stood up and went over to the front bleacher where he was sitting. "I don't know who this Sakura is, but I would gladly like it if you'd stop calling me that."  
  
Sakura frowned. Ryu was still smiling. "You can't fool me," Ryu said, low enough for only Sakura to hear. "Your eyes never lie, Sakura-san."  
  
Sakura narrowed her eyes. "What are you going to do about it?"  
  
"Well, it is obvious that no one knows that you're Sakura.yet," Ryu said in a slightly threatening tone.  
  
Sakura didn't say anything.  
  
"After you finish your little game, go on a date with me. Just one, and my lips are sealed."  
  
Sakura growled. She didn't like bribes, but she had no choice on this one. "Fine," she spat and returned to her seat with her teammates.  
  
"Who was that?" Li asked, trying not to sound interested.  
  
"An old friend," Sakura replied, frowning mercilessly at the ground. The whistle blew for the game to begin. As Sakura got up to leave, she kept hearing her name being repeated in hushed tones from behind her in the bleachers. She sighed and took her place on the field. Her life was just a living hell.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
She watched from the cold bleachers. It really sucked that she had to lose her list like that. Would the cops have it as evidence? Maybe. But what could they do? Those stupid cops couldn't find a thief even if he robbed the rug from under their feet. The game started. Those boys look so delicious. It's a shame they all have to die.  
  
The new one, Sonogi Karaku, was definitely going on the list. He was just too good-looking to let go. She smiled and watched the game with intense eyes. She had made a new list. It was exactly the same, except Sonogi Karaku was part of it too.  
  
Sonogi Karaku. He interests me. Very much.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
C-Mage: So it's only (barely) nine pages long, but don't you love the image of Syaoran? ::drool....:: And his thoughts of being gay...hilarious. All reviews, flames, comments, etc. excepted in reviews or at crystal_anjel@yahoo.com. Arigatou again!  
  
T-Anjel: aH~yeE! I don't think this chapter was all that bad. ::Scratches chin:: do you? Please review! I love reviews! They make my day! Love ya'll! Next chapter.will come.whenever.. 


	7. The Game and the Date

C-Mage: It's done! Finally! Gomen nasai, minna-san! The reason it took so long it entirely my fault! I was blocked about the soccer scene, then slacked off about the rest.... Er.... Domou arigatou gozaimasu for all of the reviews! They make me feel so happy.... All warm and tingly. And hearing your comments is great! Thanks again! And I hope that another chapter will never take this long again!  
  
T.Anjel: [scratches chin] [smiles happily] I am most happy about the reviews we're getting! I thank everyone for them! I do say that this is an interesting chapter. You should like! Yes indeed!  
  
Standard Disclaimers Apply: CCS belongs to Clamp. Period. It's over, said and done.  
  
Summary: Basically, the game between Sakura's old and present-day school and her date with Ryu.  
  
Hooded Chapter 6- The Game and the Date  
  
The whistle blew shrilly, and the Kyoto school had possession of the ball. Sakura quickly blocked the boy handling the ball. Fancy footwork, Sakura thought, but not fancy enough. Sakura quickly slid on the grass as the boy tried to fake the ball backwards. She kicked the ball out of the boy's feet's way and it speedily made its way to Li where he was wide open.  
  
The fact that Sakura and Syaoran were the best players on the team became quite evident as the goals made for that team was always made by them, and that they always managed to handle the ball very nicely. Sakura and Li always had a boy blocking them ever since the realization.  
  
Half of the game was over before Sakura knew it. She wiped the sweat from her brow and gulped feverishly down her bottle of water. "Half of the game is over," the coach said to the team. "We're winning four to three, but it doesn't mean we're going to win for sure. This team is real good, and I need you to keep this up!"  
  
Sakura, as usual, blocked out the coach's enthusiastic speech. She glanced over at the bleachers where Ryu was sitting, smiling broadly and watching her. She glared venomously.  
  
"Sonogi! Out to the field!" the coach commanded loudly, shooing Sakura out onto the field with the rest of the team. She jogged over to her spot, lazily watching the ball being switched off back and forth from teammate to teammate. She didn't have much interest in this game anymore. Why? Even she didn't know, but suspected it was because of her future hours, which were to be spent with the most annoying and pestering boy she had ever known even to this day. The ball came whizzing by to Sakura's feet. Without hesitation, Sakura kicked it hard to the nearest and most open teammate, pretending the ball was Ryu's head.  
  
Sakura vaguely remembered the whistle blowing for time-out and the coach yelling at her, telling her to get more into the game. I don't feel like it! Sakura wanted to yell, but didn't as she jogged out to the field again.  
  
Sakura feigned a face of determination and tried to play well. During the game, Sakura couldn't help realize how handsome Syaoran looked when his face was drenched in sweat and was frowning in determination. Out of habit, Sakura noticed how Syaoran would always wipe his brown bangs out of his eyes every so often. What am I thinking, Sakura thought stupidly to herself and dribbled the ball with her feet towards the goal, avoiding opposing teammates.  
  
Hey! That's Shigure! Sakura noticed a familiar face of a boy who tried to steal the ball from her. I wish I could say 'hi'., Sakura thought. Suddenly, Sakura found the game to be amusing. Her constant change of emotions could have only been explained by the fact that Sakura didn't know how to feel when she was going to have a forced date, couldn't say hi to her old friends, was unknowingly watching Syaoran constantly out of the corner of her eye, and knew that all of this was happening during a beautiful day and one of her most favorite, stress-relieving games to play.  
  
Sakura sighed inwardly as her team made another goal. The crowd, consisting of Kyoto Prefectural Nanyo high school students, cheered loudly (the females, mostly). Sakura noticed that they were all girls and they were cheering for Li's stunning goal. The fan club cheered the most and was even doing their own little dance. Which reminds me, Sakura thought, rolling her eyes, that I also have a case to solve. There's way too much on my mind.  
  
The game finished quickly. Sakura's team won; six to five. After shaking hands with the other teammates, Sakura sighed, exhausted. The team headed towards the hotel where they were able to wash up and was going to celebrate at a restaurant. Sakura lagged along behind, dragging her feet off the ground as much as she could.  
  
"Aa.are you all right?"  
  
"Eh?" Sakura looked up to see that the owner of the voice was none other than Syaoran. "I'm fine. I just have a lot on my mind."  
  
"Oh.," Syaoran said, looking away. "It was just that you were kind of dazing off while we were playing."  
  
"Was I?" Sakura asked with raised eyebrows.  
  
Syaoran only nodded.  
  
Is he blushing? Sakura thought incredulously. What a funny guy! "Are you feeling all right?" Sakura asked, repeating Syaoran's question. "You're all red."  
  
Syaoran only blushed harder and coughed. "I'm.eh. fine.."  
  
Sakura only raised her eyebrows higher. "Are you sure?" she asked and touched his forehead lightly.  
  
Syaoran jumped away from her hand as if she was trying to burn him. "I'm.f...fine," Syaoran stuttered, his walk quickening.  
  
Sakura felt slightly satisfied at the fact that she was able to make him flush like so. She gave a small smile. "Why are you walking so quickly?" Sakura asked, deciding to tease Syaoran a bit. Syaoran didn't answer her question. "Do you mind if I call you Syaoran?" Sakura asked, grinning ear to ear now.  
  
".no." Syaoran said.  
  
I know I'm a guy, Sakura thought. But I can't help it. Sakura gave Syaoran a light peck on the cheeks. "I think we should catch up with the group, Syao-kun," Sakura said, rushing ahead towards the hotel.  
  
Anyone could have fried eggs and bacon on Syaoran's face. Hell, they could have cooked pancakes on it too.  
  
"So are you and Sonogi-kun a couple now?" Eriol asked out of nowhere, looking at the still form of Syaoran.  
  
"Shutup!" Syaoran yelled at the pestering friend. "I don't know why he did that! We're nothing like that! Nothing!" Syaoran said. He hastily began to walk, a trail of steam following him. "I'm not.gay.," Syaoran said quietly to himself. He lightly touched the spot where Karaku had kissed him. He groaned inwardly. "I'm.gay.."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Come on, Sonogi-kun!" called out her roommate, Arakawa. "We're going to be late!"  
  
"That...that's okay, Arakawa-san," she replied from her bed, bundled up in blankets. "I think I've come down with something.... Cough, cough." She tried to cough realistically into her hand.  
  
"Oh. Well, if you need anything, just call room service. After all, a pretty face like yours shouldn't be destroyed." He winked at her and Sakura had to repress her gag reflex. "I'd stay to help, but Kyoto has never seen my face before, and they need some enlightenment...."  
  
"It's okay; I understand completely."  
  
"I knew you would! Well, I've got to go! Ja!" He flicked his pretty-boy locks of golden hair behind a shoulder and started out of the room.  
  
"Thank goodness," Sakura mumbled to herself as she pulled the suffocating covers off of her. "Now all I have to do is -" She was interrupted by a knock on the door and hastily threw the covers back over her. "Come in!" she called weakly, wondering who it was.  
  
"Karaku-kun?" asked Syaoran as he opened the door. "Arakawa said that you were sick, so I wanted to...." He trailed off, not sure why he'd actually come.  
  
"Check up on me?" filled in Sakura, smiling slightly. "How sweet, Syao- kun!" Noting how Syaoran blushed at the use of her nick-name, she chuckled a little. "It's nothing, really, just a little cold."  
  
Syaoran looked at her critically and replied, "You look fine."  
  
"Well, then, come here and I'll prove that I'm sick." Syaoran slowly walked over, wondering what was going on. When he got close enough, Sakura grabbed his hand and placed it on her forehead. "There, see? I really am sick, with a fever. Cough, cough...." Her skin was hot from being under the covers for so long, so Syaoran yanked his hand away and fidgeted.  
  
"Umm.... If you want...I could...stay...with...you...," he stammered.  
  
Sakura covered a giggle with a fake rack of coughs and replied, "Really, it's fine. I'll just stay in bed all night, okay? Now go, before Hiiragizawa-san comes looking for you, too."  
  
Syaoran nodded dumbly and headed for the door, closing it as he left and muttering, "I'm not gay. How could I be gay? I can't. I am not gay." Taking a shuddering breath, he almost whined out, "I can't really be gay, can I?"  
  
As soon as Syaoran left the room, Sakura threw the covers off of her and opened the door a crack. Only a few stragglers were left in the hallway, but Sakura knew that they'd all gather at the front of the hotel.  
  
Well, she'd just have to wait, wouldn't she?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Hiiragizawa."  
  
"Hai!"  
  
"Li."  
  
"...."  
  
"Li?"  
  
"Hai...."  
  
"Arakawa."  
  
"Hai!"  
  
"Sonogi."  
  
No one answered.  
  
"Sonogi?"  
  
"Coach, Karaku-kun is sick and resting in our room," informed Arakawa in a snobby voice.  
  
"Are you sure he'll be all right?" asked the coach in a worried voice, hoping that one of his star players would be able to play again.  
  
"Hai...," replied Arakawa in a bored tone, obviously used to being the focus of attention. "I told him to call room service if he needed anything."  
  
"All right. Well, team, let's go!"  
  
As the team filed out of the room, Miyako looked back towards Sakura's room, wondering what she was planning on doing and why she'd skipped out on the victory celebration.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
After waiting fifteen minutes so that everyone would surely be gone, having placed pillows under the covers in case Arakawa came back before her, she left the hotel room and walked to the meeting place Ryu had given her.  
  
Why am I doing this? Sakura asked herself as she stood at a corner, glancing occasionally at her watch. Ryu was late, the bastard. She wanted to get this done and over with as soon as possible.  
  
So that he doesn't break your cover, she reminded herself. She looked down at herself and sighed. Since she didn't have any girl clothes with her, she'd dressed in her most feminine guy clothes - khaki slacks and a dark blue shirt, with her breasts unbound. She'd put her hair back in a headband that she'd bought on the way there; green, to match her eyes.  
  
"Sakura!"  
  
Sakura looked up to see someone running towards her. Here we go..., she thought as she recognized Ryu, dressed in similar clothes. "So, where are we going?" she asked as politely as possible.  
  
"To this great Chinese place that I've heard of." He led her to the building right around the corner. "See? It's supposed to be great."  
  
Sakura stared at the name of the restaurant and gulped. This...this...this is the same one that the soccer team's going to! Oh, no! What'll I do?!  
  
"Sakura?" Ryu was staring at her oddly, noticing that she'd freaked. "Can we go in now?"  
  
"How about somewhere else?" Sakura suggested furtively. "I heard of this great restaurant down the block! It's just down."  
  
"C'mon Sakura," Ryu nudged. "This place is better. I know it."  
  
"But..but."  
  
"You don't want me to blow your cover, do you?" Ryu asked forcefully. You might as well, Sakura thought, glaring at Ryu's back. Especially considering the place where you're taking me.  
  
"H-hai," she replied quickly. The sooner they got in, the sooner she could hide. That was her only choice.  
  
After they'd been seated at a table and given their orders, Ryu turned to her and smiled. "You look great, by the way. Too bad you didn't have any more girlish-looking clothes, though. You'd have looked stunning in this dress I saw on the way here.... It was midnight blue and backless...." His eyes glistened and Sakura had to restrain herself from punching him. She could have sworn she saw a thought bubble above his head with her in it, dressed in a revealing dress.  
  
Their orders came, and Ryu and Sakura started to eat their food. Half-way through, however, Sakura felt a hand on her thigh. Clenching her hand into a fist, she asked mock-cheerfully, "So, are you having a good time, Ryu- kun?" She smiled fakely at him, hoping that he'd take his hand off of her soon. What was this pervert thinking, trying to take advantage of her.  
  
"Yes, I'm having a great time! Are you?"  
  
"Hai! Perfectly lovely.... Hahahah...."  
  
"Oh! I almost forgot. I got you something, Sakura." Ryu dug around in his pockets for a minute before coming up with a dark, rectangular box. "Here you go." Sakura stared at it blankly. "Go on, open it."  
  
Hesitantly reaching over, Sakura picked the box up. She opened it, and saw something laying in the red velvet that lined it. "You got me a candy necklace?!" she screamed, incredulous.  
  
"Well...." Ryu sweatdropped. "I was short on money, so it was all I could afford.... After all, I am taking you to a nice restaurant, right?" Sakura face faulted. "Oh, never mind. Can I put it on you?"  
  
Sakura sighed and handed him the necklace, turning her back to him so that he could put in on her. As he pulled it over her head and placed it under her hair, she felt a hand brush down her side, dangerously close to her breast. Dammit! Why can't I just beat him up?! She clenched her hands so tightly that her fingernails, short from acting like a guy, dug into her palms.  
  
"There! It doesn't look so bad, does it?" He looked at her hopefully as she turned back around and returned to her food.  
  
Ignoring him, she starting eating again as he tried to start up another conversation. Eventually, though, he gave up and ate, too.  
  
"I need to use the restroom," Sakura heard a familiar voice say from the table a few meters away.  
  
"Me, too," replied another.  
  
"Kuso!" Sakura whispered and dug into her food with a vengeance, hoping that she wouldn't be spotted.  
  
"Sakura?" asked Ryu. "Are you sick?"  
  
"Shh!" she whispered, shaking her head sharply. Two boys passed them heading towards the restrooms, not noticing the girl who was eating much too quickly. "Phew," she said, leaning back gratefully. "They didn't notice me."  
  
"Who?" asked Ryu, just as the boys passed by again. The one with chestnut hair stopped and looked hard at Sakura. Sakura gulped and turned her face aside, but not quickly enough.  
  
"Karaku-kun?" asked Syaoran, confused, gazing at the person with their head turned. "I thought you had a cold."  
  
"Eh? Sonogi-san? Is that you?" inquired the black-haired one.  
  
"Karaku? Who?!" Sakura cried out in a falsetto voice.  
  
"But...you're Sonogi Karaku, right?" asked Hiiragizawa, staring at her intently. "I never mistake anyone."  
  
"Sonogi Karaku? Oh! You must mean my...cousin! Hai, my cousin! Hahaha...."  
  
"But you look just like him," replied Syaoran stubbornly.  
  
"Everyone says we look just alike, even though we're only cousins. I'm Sonogi Sakura," she answered hurriedly, bowing to them.  
  
Hiiragizawa bowed and said, "Hiiragizawa Eriol. This is Li Syaoran." When Syaoran didn't bow, Hiiragizawa elbowed him, and he stiffly bowed. "So your cousin is Sonogi-san? He's great at soccer. One of the best on the team."  
  
"Ah.... Where is he?" she asked, trying to make more cover.  
  
"Sick," said Syaoran.  
  
"Too bad, ne? If he were here, we could have all had a nice chat," said Hiiragizawa wishfully. "As it is, the coach is probably wondering where we are. Nice to meet you, Sonogi-san." Eriol bowed again and went back to the table.  
  
"N-nice t-to m-meet you, S-Sonogi-san," said Syaoran, bowing again and turning red, then running back to his table.  
  
Sakura sighed and leaned back in her chair. "That was close."  
  
"Who were they?!" asked Ryu, horrified that anyone might interfere with his chances of getting together with Sakura.  
  
"Just some guys on my soccer team in Tokyo," she replied. "That was very close though. I'm lucky they didn't recognize me.... So, where we were?"  
  
"Ah...so, Sakura. Did you miss me while you were away in Tokyo?" he asked.  
  
"Baka.I barely remembered you existed," Sakura growled. No, it didn't matter anymore that Ryu recognized her. She could just go on pretending to be Sonogi Sakura, and no matter what Ryu said, she could just plainly deny it.  
  
Ryu had obviously not heard her answer, but dreamt that she replied in a romantic sort of way. It was good enough.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Sakura, I had the best time ever!" exclaimed Ryu after they'd left the restaurant. Sakura had insisted that they wait for half an hour after the soccer team left to leave. "A...ai...aishiteru!" He shoved his face at hers, lips puckered.  
  
"Wah?!" Sakura cried out. "Iie!"  
  
"But, Sakura.... Don't you love me?" asked Ryu, eyes watering. "If you love me, then you'll kiss me."  
  
"Iie! Iie, iie, iie!" She shoved him away from her.  
  
Kneeling down in front of her, Ryu muttered, "It's now or never. Sakura, will you marry me?!" He pulled out a Ring-Pop and pressed it up at her. "Please?!"  
  
"NANI?! BAKA!!!!" Sakura smacked him on the back of the head, not too gently may I say so myself, and left him on the ground, unconscious from the blow. She'd had enough of Ryu, keeping her cover or no. She ran back to the hotel, throwing away the headband and necklace on the way, hoping that all of the soccer team members would be in their rooms already.  
  
When she got back to the hotel she opened the main doors and went up to the room she shared with Arakawa, tiptoeing down the hallway. Taking out her key, she unlocked the room and entered.  
  
The light from the hall illuminated the room slightly, and Sakura noticed something immediately.  
  
A figure dressed all in black was leaning over Arakawa's bed, gleaming wire held in gloved hands.  
  
"Ahhhhhh!!!!!!!!!" screamed Sakura, launching herself at the figure. It was a reflexive instinct. The scream alerted the others on the team, and they rushed into the room just to see Arakawa sit up in bed screaming and Sonogi tackling a black-clad figure.  
  
Sakura tried to pin the figure down, but she was too agile. There was no doubt in her mind that this was the killer, however. She'd read lab reports that stated the cause of death for the other victims as wire.  
  
Struggling, the killer cried out and slashed out at Sakura with a knife that had appeared in her hand suddenly. As she swiped at Sakura, a lock of hair came tumbling out of the hood for Sakura to see. Sakura stumbled back, and the figure jumped out of the window, landing on the ground two floors below. Everyone crowded at the window, trying to see if the killer was alive, but the light of the new moon made it hard to see. Eventually, they noticed that Sakura was hurt.  
  
"Are you all right?" asked Syaoran, kneeling down to look at the arm she covered with her hand. Blood was slipping out between her fingers and dripping onto the carpet, staining it.  
  
"I'm fine...." Sakura replied, wincing as he moved her hand to look at it. Her breasts were still unbound, and thanked the gods that the light wasn't on.  
  
"It doesn't look too deep," Syaoran muttered, inspecting it closely. "Here." He pulled out a handkerchief and tied it around tightly.  
  
Blushing a little, Sakura replied, "Arigatou."  
  
"Wait!" cried out Arakawa as the team members started to file out of the room. "What about ME?! I was almost killed! All Sonogi did was get cut!" The boys glanced at him and left, but the coach ran over, frantic.  
  
"My poor, poor boy. Are you all right? The killer didn't touch you, did it?" The coach pulled Arakawa into a tight hug, choking Arakawa.  
  
"Need...air...," he gasped out, poking his arm.  
  
"Oh! Gomen nasai! I'm just so glad that I didn't loose another." The coach sighed and left, leaving Syaoran, Sakura, Arakawa, and Miyako, who was standing in a corner.  
  
"It's getting late. You'd better go to bed, all of you. Oyasumi nasai," Miyako said as she left for her own room. She made a mental note to talk to Sakura early in the morning.  
  
"I need to get some sleep," said Syaoran, standing up. "And if you're sick, so do you." He blushed at his show of concern. "And wash that cut, then bandage it again." He left, heading back to the room he shared with Hiiragizawa.  
  
"Ah...Sonogi-san?" asked Arakawa as he got back into his bed.  
  
"Hai?" asked Sakura as she gathered together her pajamas.  
  
"Arigatou. For saving my life, I mean." Silent for a moment, he then added, "Now the rest of the world can see my beautiful face!" He winked exaggeratedly as Sakura went into their bathroom to change with a sweatdrop following behind her.  
  
Getting into her bed and pulling the covers up, she thought to herself, At least I was finally able to do something. And, that's one less murder, and one less child to be mourned. Plus, now I know that the killer is blonde. That will narrow down the suspects greatly.  
  
Glad that she'd finally done something right on the case, she fell asleep feeling much more contented than she had ever been for the long years past.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
So, you caught me this time. It was my fault, anyway. I probably shouldn't have gone after one while on this trip, but I couldn't help it. They looked so delicious on the field....so delicious.  
  
She reached up to pull down her hood and noticed something. A few strands of hair were loose. What if someone saw.... It'll help them! Another clue they've got on me! Now isn't this getting exciting?  
  
But..., she reassured, I was probably moving too fast for them to see. And if one of them saw it, they're probably too scared to tell the police.  
  
She smiled. You found me out this time, but next time, you won't. I guarantee it.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
C-Mage: I finally finished! Yay! And just in time for my trip, too! Um.... Tiny Anjel wrote out the soccer scene, since I didn't fell like it, and it's majorly thanks to her that this chapter it out. Interesting, ne? I like this chapter.... The plot actually moves forward, too! ^.^ I hope you all enjoyed it...and please review at FFN or at crystal_anjel@yahoo.com. Arigatou for reading!  
  
T.Anjel: Mmm..so wutcha think? I personally liked this chapter of some sorts. Better get moving on the next chapter, don't you think? Well! Review and I will be mighty happy. ::nudge nudge:: So! Click on the little button on the bottom and write a little something and click on the submit or what-not. Till next time! JA! 


	8. Some Good Ol' Fashioned Detective Work

T.Anjel- Mou! Major case of writer's block!  
  
C-Mage- Well, again it took forever to get out. First T.A.-chan had writer's block, then I procrastinated on editing it. Um...at least I edited it, right? Otherwise you wouldn't be reading it. Ow. My shoulders hurt. . Stupid school. Anyway, I'm dedicating this to Teeny-chan, whose birthday is on Saturday, and to Mary-chan (or Liz-chan - not too sure), who e-mailed me and pestered me to HURRY UP! ^.^' (If I said that I'd dedicate a chapter to you, tell me and I'll change it, okay?) Domou arigatou gozaimasu to all of you reviewers - coming back from vacation to seventy-seven reviews, which steadily built up to ninety-one was awesome. T.A.-chan is on vacation now, so...I'm in charge, I guess. -.-' Read on!  
  
Standard disclaimers apply.  
  
Hooded- chapter 7- Some Good Ol'-Fashioned Detective Work  
  
"Sakura-san, stop pacing."  
  
"I can't help it," Sakura replied frantically. "It's helping me think."  
  
Miyako rubbed her temples. "Do you mind sharing the information?"  
  
Sakura stopped pacing Miyako's hotel room for a second and whipped her head around to face Miyako. "Her hair. It was blonde." She resumed her pacing.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Positive," Sakura mumbled with a small waving motion of her hand. "When she was running off, her hood came off slightly and I saw her hair."  
  
"How do you know it's a 'her'?"  
  
"Her curves," Sakura replied simply.  
  
"So it's obviously not who we suspected," Miyako said. "Unless she wore a wig in case she thought something like that would happen."  
  
Sakura shook her head in disagreement. "It looked way too natural, and I would have seen a bit of her brown hair underneath the blonde. No, it wasn't a wig."  
  
Miyako gave a small smirk. "That eliminates about half of the suspects of the fan club. Damn the hair dye."  
  
Sakura stopped her pacing and gave a confident smile. "I'm going to have a word with one of the club members." It was a permanent decision, and Miyako didn't argue with it.  
  
"When?" she asked.  
  
"Tomorrow."  
  
"Fine," Miyako said. "Get back to your room before someone wakes up and finds you missing."  
  
"Hai, sensei."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Oh yeah, Sonogi-kun," Hiiragizawa said. "We met your cousin yesterday at the restaurant we were at! She looks just like you."  
  
"Aa...." Sakura sweatdropped. It was just like Hiiragizawa to bring up that topic in the middle of the bus ride back where she had nowhere to run. "I get that a lot." Sakura gave a small, helpless shrug. "I haven't seen her in awhile. How is she doing?"  
  
"She seemed to be doing fine when we saw her. She seemed to be on a date, in fact," Hiiragizawa said with a twinkle in his eye.  
  
"Haha! Sakura-chan? On a date? That's hilarious!" Sakura said, forcing out a laugh and slapping her knee for emphasis. I hope that made it sound like she and I are pretty close.  
  
"Is that funny?"  
  
"Hai - when we were younger, she would always say that she would never go out with icky little boys, and as we got older, I always teased her saying that she could never get a guy," Sakura replied smoothly. This lying thing was easier than she thought.  
  
"Have you gone out with anyone, Sonogi-kun?" Hiiragizawa asked with gleaming eyes. Syaoran's ears involuntarily perked up at the question.  
  
"Eto.I.uh.have," Sakura replied nervously. Kuso! I should have just said 'iie'.  
  
"Eh? When was this?"  
  
Sakura silently wished she wasn't sitting next the mysterious-looking boy. "A year ago," Sakura lied. "Her name was.Chiharu," Sakura said, saying the first friend that came to mind. "We went out for a couple of months, but had to break up because I was moving to Kyoto." Sakura let out a sigh. Damn Hiiragizawa and his questions! Once you know it, I'm going to have a whole made-up little life.  
  
"You must have been close with her, ne? Did you happen to see her while we were in Tokyo?"  
  
Nosy little Hiiragizawa. It seems like he knows who I am, Sakura thought suspiciously. The way he's always smiling and making me feel so stupid. What is this guy up to? What has he been up to?  
  
"Iie, I wasn't able to see her," Sakura answered and wasn't able to help but glance over to the seat across the aisle where Syaoran sat, staring out the window. Sakura knew he was blushing. It might have been given away by the cloud of steam above his head or the fogging up of his window.  
  
He's so cute when he blushes, Sakura thought. She had given up with fighting against herself. Syaoran, to her mind, had become one of her high school crushes, which she would just laugh about later on in life. It's going to pass, she assured herself. I'm sure it will.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sakura wiped a gallon of sweat from her brow. She had the thought the coach would give them a break at least, but just the next day, he had made the team sprint back and forth across the field, giving them no time to take a breath of air. It was tiring, and to Sakura, it was pointless. Her eyes darted over to the bleachers where the fan club was filing out. It's now or never.  
  
Sakura lightly sprinted over to the bleachers and was greeted by starry eyes and drooling mouths. The closest members of the fan club immediately grabbed her hands. "What bring you here, Sonogi-sama?"  
  
Sakura couldn't help but sweatdrop. These girls were only inches away from her and nearing every second. What have I gotten myself into? Sakura thought with unease, and spotted one of the members sneaking away.  
  
"Ah! Matte!" Sakura shouted suddenly, startling all of the girls. The bedraggled girl stopped walking and turned around to face Sakura with raised eyebrows. Sakura hopped around the staring fan girls and jumped in front of her target. "I need to talk to you," Sakura said, pleading with her eyes. "Onegai?"  
  
The girl gave an annoyed sigh and agreed, receiving death glares from her fellow members. "This isn't to ask me out, is it?" the girl asked on their way to the teahouse. She was actually sounding hopeful about it.  
  
"Iie, it isn't," Sakura assured and opened the door to the teahouse for her. She was still in her sweaty practice clothes, but they were the least of her worries at the moment. "Order what you want," Sakura said, giving a small hand gesture of her hand to the menu on the table.  
  
"I don't drink tea," she replied simply. "Water would do."  
  
Without inquiries, Sakura ordered a cup of water and a cup of weak green tea for herself.  
  
"What do you want?" the girl asked rather rudely.  
  
"I just wanted to know a couple of things," Sakura said in a commanding tone, leaving no room for arguments. "Firstly, I wanted to know what brought you to the fan club. I could tell you don't go of your own free will."  
  
"A friend dragged me along," the girl said simply. "I'm Suzuki Reika, by the way."  
  
Sakura gave a faint smile before moving on. "Is there anything you could tell me that goes inside the fan club?"  
  
"A bit nosy, you are, don't you think?" Suzuki asked with a sly smile.  
  
"Is that wrong?" Sakura asked with equal force and insolence.  
  
Suzuki gave a shrug. Their orders arrived, and she took a sip of her water. "What exactly are you trying to get out of this information?"  
  
What could Sakura use as an excuse? Perfect! "A friend of mine was thinking about joining the fan club, but she didn't want to join with a whole bunch of fanatics who did nothing but cheer all day. She asked me if I could ask someone about the members of the club. Who everyone is and what they're like."  
  
That seemed to be a good enough excuse to give away information. "All right. The club has a president, a vice, a secretary, and a treasurer."  
  
"What do they need money for?" Sakura inquired.  
  
"For pompoms, uniforms, banners, and such," Suzuki said with disgust. "I was hoping they could use the money for a life, but that's not going to happen."  
  
Sakura couldn't help smirk to herself at the comment.  
  
"Anyway, you've the president. She's a total.baka. What can I say? She's totally obsessive over the soccer players. I do not understand why - you guys aren't stars or anything. It's not like the other members aren't obsessive, but she's over the top. And then we have the vice president. She's somewhat normal compared to the president.."  
  
According to Suzuki's description of everyone, the president seemed to be most infatuated over the team. And she's blonde, too, Sakura added to her thoughts.  
  
"Thanks for everything, Suzuki-san," Sakura said, getting up. She placed her share of yen on the table and sped off towards her apartment. There was no doubt that the president was the killer. The trouble was finding the proof, wasn't it?  
  
Sakura's feet padded quickly along the street, needing to tell her newly found information to Miyako.  
  
"Karaku-kun!"  
  
Sakura skidded to a halt and turned around to see no one other than her second cousin. "Ah.Daidouji-san."  
  
"Long time no see!" Tomoyo said, squeezing Sakura into a small hug. Pulling her to the side of the road, she asked, "How's the case going?"  
  
"We're getting somewhere," Sakura replied casually.  
  
"Do you know who it is?" Tomoyo asked.  
  
"Un.. She's the president of the fan club," Sakura answered, keeping her voice low.  
  
"Honto?" Tomoyo said with mild surprise. "How are you planning to catch her?"  
  
Sakura shook her head. "I don't know. If she really is who I think she is, she's covering her tracks well."  
  
"Let me help you," Tomoyo pleaded with sparkling eyes. "I'll join the fan club. There will be no harm in it."  
  
"Wouldn't Hiiragizawa-san ask why you joined the club?" Sakura inquired with raised eyebrows.  
  
"Of course he would!" Tomoyo said as if she had no care in the world. "I'll just say that I wanted to snatch one of their posters of him or something. He'll probably not believe me, but he won't ask."  
  
"If you're sure about it, Tomoyo-chan," Sakura said with hesitation.  
  
"Don't worry, Sakura-chan," Tomoyo said in a low whisper. "Trust me. This will be a piece of cake."  
  
Sakura only managed to gnaw her lower lip in response as Tomoyo walked off with a lighter step than before. Sakura already knew Tomoyo was coming up with some plan in her head. Sakura gave a resigned sigh. I'm counting on you, Tomoyo-chan.  
  
Sakura walked the rest of the way to the apartment. She quickly reported her conversation with Suzuki Reika to Miyako and slumped on her bed. The question was: Would she try to kill Arakawa again? Or would she go after the next boy on the list?  
  
Or maybe she'll be after me..  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sakura spent the whole school day wondering if Tomoyo had joined the fan club yet. Would the others shun her because she was dating Hiiragizawa? If so, she might not be able to get the information she needed.  
  
"Sonogi-kun, you're a bit out of it today," Eriol said, prodding Sakura with his chopsticks.  
  
"Eh?" Sakura blinked herself from her musings and saw that they were all eating lunch.  
  
"So are you going out with that girl from the fan club, Sonogi-kun?" Eriol asked with his usual twinkle in his eyes. "What was her name.Suzuki-san?"  
  
"I'm not going out with her," Sakura said simply, munching on the bento she picked up before school started.  
  
"You seemed to be in quite the rush to talk to her yesterday," Eriol said. "I had no idea you were making friends behind our backs, Sonogi-kun!"  
  
Sakura sweatdropped. From the corner of her eye, she saw Syaoran's cheeks turn his usual shade of red as he stared down at his lunch. From his constant blushing, Sakura would have had to guess that he liked her.  
  
Iie, Sakura corrected herself. Syaoran likes 'him'. The Sonogi Karaku character you made up. When this is all over, you just run off back to Tokyo and forget he exists, as he'll forget that Sonogi Karaku existed. It's quite a simple process, isn't it?  
  
"You're dazing off again, Karaku-kun," Eriol said, waving his hand in front of Sakura's dazed eyes.  
  
Sakura gave out a false laugh. "Am I? I guess I just have a lot of things on my mind." She resumed eating in silence.  
  
Eriol set his chopsticks down with a soft thud. "Sorry to leave you two early, but I have to meet with a sensei before class starts again. Ja!" And with that, Eriol was off.  
  
"You're burning your food, Syao-kun," Sakura said seconds later, as if starting a normal conversation.  
  
Syaoran blushed even harder.  
  
"You know...," Sakura started, her tone melancholy.  
  
Syaoran looked up.  
  
"It would be best if you got over me," Sakura replied to his questioning stare.  
  
"What makes you think I feel anything for you," Syaoran said back.  
  
"My gut told me so," Sakura replied, her emerald eyes not leaving his amber ones.  
  
"Even so, why should I?"  
  
"Get over me?" Sakura specified. "Because there is no way you could have me." Mainly because your crush doesn't exist, Sakura finished off in her head. "Gomen ne, Syao-kun. But at this rate, things will be the way they were before I came." Sure, she meant to say that once the case was done for, she wouldn't be here anymore. But she couldn't say that to him.  
  
"At what rate?" Syaoran asked. Whatever bull Karaku was talking about, it sure sounded as if he was leaving.  
  
Observant, isn't he? "Something you don't have to worry about," Sakura replied, keeping her voice steady. "For now, go look for a nice girl. There's no way on earth that you're gay." She stood up, collecting her bento and returning to the classroom.  
  
And so he adds on to my doubt, Syaoran thought, watching the auburn-haired retreating figure. The fact that Karaku already knew that he liked him was bad enough. But to tell him to back off, that was a different matter. Karaku was definitely hiding something, and he was going to find out.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
For the rest of the school day Syaoran just stared blankly as his surroundings, not even noticing when the sensei snapped at him to pay attention. Sakura tried to act uncaring about Syaoran's situation, but her insides were twisting with guilt and a sense that she had betrayed him. She didn't know that he was planning a way to discover what she was protecting.  
  
Feigning that he was too ill to practice, he went home, Hiiragizawa going with him to ensure that he didn't collapse on the street or something equally terrible - with Syaoran as one of his best players, the coach wanted him to get healthy as soon as possible. Since Hiiragizawa and Syaoran were gone from practice, Sakura had no real competition, going through the motions of kicking the ball and dribbling in a mechanical manner. Through her jumble of thoughts she did notice that Tomoyo was sitting over with the fan club, dressed in a black and white uniform, watching the cheers and appearing to learn them.  
  
Once practice was over and Sakura had finished tuning out a lecture on putting her whole self into the moment, Sakura walked over to talk to Tomoyo - for all that she'd only been in the club for a little, she might have gathered some information.  
  
As she neared the group she was greeted again with squeals of "It's Sonogi- sama!", "Aishiteru, Sonogi-sama!", and "Wai!". Sweatdropping she walked over to Tomoyo, whom the other girls eyed with a mixture of envy and bitterness. Just as he was less than a meter away, the president stepped out in front of him.  
  
"Konnichiwa, Sonogi-sama," she greeted, fluttering her eyelashes and smiling flirtatiously. "For what reason do you visit our humble little group?" She tilted her head, causing the golden locks to swish, and licked her lips slightly.  
  
"I came to see Daidouji-san, if you don't mind," Sakura replied politely, trying not to inhale too much of her hairspray.  
  
"What would you want Tomoyo-chan for?" she asked, the name for once not sounding pleasant. "She's already dating Hiiragizawa-sama and wouldn't think of dumping him for you." She shook her head a little, sighing that one of the cutest men on the team was taken.  
  
"I'd like to speak to Daidouji-san alone, please. I don't want to date her. In fact," she replied, lying smoothly, "I have a message for her from Hiiragizawa-kun."  
  
"I'll let you off this time, since you're here for Hiiragizawa-sama," she said, swooning, "but next time, you're mine. She smile predatorily as Sakura, making her feel uneasy.  
  
Smiling grimly at the president, Sakura said, "It was nice meeting you...." She trailed off expectantly.  
  
"Arakawa Mazuni," she supplied, as expected. She stuck out her hand for Sakura to shake, acting quite civil for someone who was supposed to be obsessed.  
  
"Mazuni-san, then," she said, shaking her hand. "I hope we can meet again some time."  
  
As soon as she pulled away Mazuni run over to her group of hyper friends and screamed, "Sonogi-sama touched me!" Her friends cried "Wai!" while running at her and trying to touch her hand, hoping for some residue from Sakura's hand. Mazuni held her hand up as far as it would go, hopping up the bleachers to keep ahead of her fellow obsessors. "Iie! Sonogi-sama touched my hand, not yours. You can't have him!" she screeched as she reached the top bleacher, fending off the girls, all the while trying to smile at Sakura.  
  
Sweatdropping, Sakura went over to Tomoyo, who motioned to behind the building as a safe place to talk. When they'd gotten far enough away, Tomoyo sniffed the air and pronounced, "Something smells."  
  
"Aa...gomen!" Sakura replied, realizing that it was probably her practice uniform. "I need to wash my uniform - that's probably it." She blushed furiously as Tomoyo giggled for a second, then stopped.  
  
"Enough of this. We have some things to talk about, ne, Sakura-chan?" Tomoyo said in a low voice.  
  
"Hai," Sakura affirmed. Looking at Tomoyo expectantly, she asked, "Have you found out anything, Tomoyo-chan? About the president...Mazuni Arakawa...?"  
  
Tomoyo smiled at her. "I did indeed get some information on Mazuni-san." She pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it to Sakura, who glanced at the violet writing before stuffing it into a pocket. "That paper has her address, phone number, e-mail, favorite hang-outs, family history...." She trailed off and blinked. "Is that enough?"  
  
"Hai, hai, it should be enough, Tomoyo-chan. Arigatou." She smiled genuinely at Tomoyo, who returned it. "Is there anything else...?"  
  
Tomoyo shook her head. "Iie, that's all I could get in such a short amount of time. I'll try to have more for you later, though."  
  
"Well, I need to go change," said Sakura ruefully, looking down at her sweat-stained outfit. "I'll see you later...and arigatou again." Smiling, she jogged back to the locker rooms to change so that she could go home and inform Miyako on the updates to their information.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sitting, she leaned back against the cushions on her headboard. She'd enjoyed the practice that day. Hiiragizawa and Li hadn't been there, but Sonogi Karaku had looked as delicious as ever.  
  
She smiled. Up close Sonogi looked even better.... She could feel her blood heating up, but she forced the impulse down. She had to wait. If it did it too soon then the police would catch on, curse them. They were getting smarter - she could tell. But, if she were careful, they wouldn't catch her.  
  
Recalling the words of the fan club president earlier that day, she whispered, "Next time you're mine, Sonogi Karaku."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
C-Mage- Umm...that isn't too bad, is it? If it feels all disjointed and stuff, it might be because I wrote the last two parts (soccer and killer) instead of T.A.-chan. And again I work 'wonders' - this time seven to nine pages. Anyway, I think that it's fairly good. ^.~ I'm very sorry about how we're treating Syaoran, but it must be done - I think. Review at FFN or e-mail us at crystal_anjel@yahoo.com. Arigatou! 


	9. Last Mile to the Truth

C-Mage: Well, here it is, after about three weeks. Sorry I take so long, but school really catches up with me. I just finished a project, and it's pretty neat, if I do say so myself. ^.^' This is dedicated to the reviewers, who review so nicely; the people who told us about how this was being plagerized by Silent-Demoness (isn't anymore, though); and to Kaze, who noticed that the fanclub president and the stuck-up boy both have the same last name 'Arakawa'. No, they are not related - it's pure coincidence, or something like that. Maybe we just like the name. We don't own CCS or very much of anything, so please don't sue us. Arigatou.....  
  
T.Anjel- Ah! I must leave my share of notes too, man! Goodness me, C- Mage just said everything that was needed to say. So therefore! My usual short A.Ns will be as short as ever. I will announce that this is the last chapter. WhoOPDIdoO! If you count the epilogue as the last chapter, then this is the second to last chapter. Well.I think both of us have been slacking off and quality is going up and down and up and down.so have no expectations, dear readers. No matter what you say, I'll love you anyway!  
  
Hooded- Chapter Eight - last mile to the truth  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"...I hear that he likes Li-kun..."  
  
"...let him down yesterday, he did..."  
  
"...poor guy...all depressed..."  
  
As Sakura walked into school the next day she heard whispers that linked her 'name' and Syaoran's; whispers that stopped as soon as she entered the room. Trying not to look to confused she sat down at her desk as all the students looked at her, sitting stalk-still, as if having been caught doing something against the rules. Pulling out her books she started to study for the Japanese test she had that day, pretending to ignore the others as the rumors started up again, only quieter this time.  
  
Once more the door shushed open, this time Syaoran entering as it closed in his wake. His eyes looked slightly bloodshot and he seemed to be grumpier than normal - a bad sign. Sighing, Sakura readied herself for a new school day; this time, however, it would be one with rumors. If she'd thought that there would be less rumors because this was an all-boys school, she was wrong.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Arakawa Mazuni pushed a lock of golden hair behind one ear absentmindedly, eyes watching the running boys down on the field at all times. They were just so stunningly gorgeous, baggy practice uniforms sticking to their backs and chests. Suddenly two female voices broke through her mini- trance.  
  
"Guess what, Shini-chan?" asked one enthusiastically.  
  
"Nani?" responded the other, just as spiritedly.  
  
"I heard that Sonogi-sama likes Li-sama, and that Li-sama likes him back!"  
  
"But...but...they can't be gay?!" cried out the second voice, close to tears. "They're just so...so...KAKKOI!"  
  
Tuning them out, Mazuni turned her eyes to rest on Sonogi Karaku again. It was a pity that he was gay; he was just so cute....  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sakura closed her eyes and sat back on her bed and arched her back, stretching after having been crouched down for so long. She'd just been studying Tomoyo's information, and found some very interesting things.  
  
She leaned back onto her bed to think over what she'd learned, trying to piece it all together. Why was Mazuni doing this? What was her motive? Was she possibly going to get something out of killing high school boys?  
  
Finally deciding that she should look it over one more time, she picked up the paper to read it and saw a glimpse of some writing on the backside. Turning it over, she saw that Syaoran's address had been neatly written down in dark purple ink. 'Just in case you need it,' it read below the perfectly written address.  
  
Sakura shook her head and pocketed the small scrap of paper. Standing up, she decided that a walk would do her good, since she always thought best when doing something other than sitting inactive.  
  
"Miyako-san, I'm going out for a walk," she called out as she entered and exited the front room, pausing for a second to pull on her shoes and glance at Miyako, who waved at her silently from behind a newspaper. Yanking the door shut and hearing it click as it locked from inside, she headed down the hall and to the first floor, heading out onto the street.  
  
She let her feet take her where they wished, turning herself onto autopilot as she started to muse.  
  
Arakawa Mazuni had transferred to Tokyo three years ago from a small town that Sakura had never heard of before. The reasons for the move were unknown, as her dad - her only living parent - had had a steady job where they used to live. She was obsessed with her old soccer team as well, even dating the captain of the team while all the other guys drooled after her.  
  
Sakura smirked. How in the world could Tomoyo have gotten such detailed information in just two days? she thought. It's just a Tomoyo thing she does, isn't it? Sakura turned back to her serious ponderings.  
  
Then, suddenly, she'd moved to Tokyo. No one in the fan club knew why, as Tomoyo had tried her hardest to find out. All they knew was that something horrible had happened, something that she never talked about.  
  
Now, what would her motive be for the murders? she wondered once more. If she got on so well with the soccer team from her old home, why's she killing boys here? There's got to be some reason....  
  
Baka Sakura, Sakura scolded herself. Just because she got along with some other soccer team might not have anything to do with her killing the boys. Maybe her dad? It might even have to do with her unknown mom. Or maybe something outside of school. My thoughts are too narrow and closed, Sakura thought.  
  
"What's going on?" Sakura whispered to herself as she unconsciously leaned against a light pole planted at the edge of the sidewalk. Her hand moved to her pocket and took out the neatly folded piece of paper. She unfolded it, staring blankly at Syaoran's address. Was I too harsh? Sakura asked herself. Would it have been better if I just didn't say anything and left after the case quietly?  
  
Sakura sighed and shifted her weight off of the pole and walked along the street. This time, with a destination in mind.  
  
In due time, Sakura was standing in front of an ordinary apartment building, which looked identical to those next to it. What are you doing here, Sakura? Sakura asked herself. To apologize? I doubt it.  
  
She stood in front of the red brick building, staring at windows as they one-by-one turned from a fuzzy yellow to a pitch black. Should I go back? Sakura wondered to herself. I have no business here.  
  
She let out another exhausted sigh. What if Mazuni came by here tonight? She found another pole to lean on and sat at the base of it, staring vacantly at the building across the street from her.  
  
She dozed off and on for an hour or so, keeping a sleepy eye open for any suspicious movement around the building. Miyako-san must be worried, Sakura suddenly thought as she woke up from another short dozing period. She took out her emergency cell from her pocket and dialed her apartment number.  
  
After apologizing profusely and assuring worried-sick Miyako that she was okay, she hung up, saying that she had some work to do. Aa! Sakura eyes flitted over to a dark something moving stealthily to Syaoran's building. As if by magic, she began to climb the vertical wall. Kuso! Sakura cursed inwardly and sprinted towards the entrance of the apartment, ignoring the annoying pains of the cramps that formed in her legs as she sat for over and hour on the street.  
  
She found the front door opened, and continued running up a stairwell with profound speed. Having memorized the apartment number from the paper Tomoyo gave her, Sakura quickly scanned the third floor until she found the number '24' pinned to a wooden door.  
  
Sakura uselessly tested the doorknob as it was firmly locked. She backed up a few feet and aimed a perfect kick right above the knob where the lock would be. The door didn't open, but it did give a good jangle, so she kicked it again, knowing that she was making enough noise to wake up the entire floor. The door burst open at the sudden strength, and Sakura zoomed inside, quickly adjusting her eyes to the lack of light.  
  
Sakura found two doors to the left and one to the right. The one to the right was a closet. The other to the left was the bathroom and the last door was locked. Don't die, Syaoran, dammit, Sakura cursed. Fleetingly wondering just how paranoid the Chinese boy was, she kicked at the door and saw a scene of chaos unfold.  
  
Syaoran was on the floor wearing a pair of green pajamas and wrestling a black clad figure, who was wielding a clean, shimmering segment of wire.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Syaoran rolled over, trying to pin the figure down, urgently thinking through all of the attacks taught him by the Li clan. The person wearing black was too lithe, which allowed the him or her to slide away from his heavy grasps.  
  
Syaoran, being the light sleeper that he was, had been dreaming when he'd heard movement by his window. Cracking his eyes open as they adjusted to the darkness, he made out a dark figure walking towards his bed, a length of wire held in gloved hands.  
  
Forming a plan in his head and waiting until they were close enough to attack, he'd sprung himself at the figure and pulled them to the ground, trying to get them down and keep them down, when he'd heard three loud slams and from the corner of his eye saw the dark silhouette of a figure cover the doorway.  
  
Too busy struggling with the figure to see who was there, he made a grab at the wire, the sharp metal cutting into his flesh as he yanked it away and to the side. I'll have a scar after that, he thought, trying to ignore the pain in his hand while still going at the mysterious attacker.  
  
Syaoran aimed a punch with his uninjured hand at the figure's head, then a kick. The opponent dodged them sloppily, getting nicked on the cheek from his kick. Syaoran was too intent on getting a good punch in on the intruder, that he didn't see it sneaking out a dagger from beneath its cloak.  
  
And with one sudden motion, it swiped.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sakura saw the glint of metal and in the blink of an eye had shoved Syaoran out of the way. He stumbled onto his bed and banged his head on the wall, knocking him unconscious.  
  
Sakura let out a piercing cry as the dagger embedded itself into the lower part of her left arm. Blood dripped dangerously from her wound, making her feel weaker by the moment. Counting her seconds, Sakura ripped a strip of Syaoran's mattress cover and wrapped her wound with it, tying the knot with her teeth and right hand.  
  
Then, the masked Mazuni lunged with her bloodstained dagger. She gave loud grunts as she aimed for Sakura's heart, stomach, and shoulders. Sakura dodged them all, stepping backwards every time. Her arms was feeling numb and yet excruciatingly painful at the same time. No time to think about that now! Sakura yelled at herself as she managed to grab Mazuni's dagger- gripping hand with her right one as she made another careless lunge at Sakura's throat.  
  
Sakura gripped the end of Mazuni's wrist tightly, knowing that it drained the energy and power from the hand.  
  
Mazuni dropped the dagger helplessly, and Sakura quickly kicked it aside to the not-so-far corner of the small room. With an angry cry, the killer aimed a punch with her free hand at Sakura's jaw. It hit its mark and Sakura stumbled along the opposite wall, wiping a line of blood that dribbled from the side of her mouth.  
  
With newfound intensity, Sakura sparred with the girl, landing various punches everywhere. Finding an opening, Sakura grabbed Mazuni's arm and twisted it around to the back, locking her in a stiff position. Sakura took a quick glance at Syaoran, who was just regaining his consciousness from the blunt hit he took a few minutes ago.  
  
"Stop standing there, Syaoran; call the police!" Sakura commanded. Just as Syaoran was taking note of the situation and rushed off to do so, Sakura added, "Tell them Kinomoto is here with the killer." He said nothing and rushed off to the kitchen where his cordless phone lay.  
  
Sakura unpinned Mazuni's arm, and before Mazuni could react to the sudden movement, Sakura punched Mazuni in the gut. Mazuni doubled over, gripping her stomach and losing her own consciousness as she slumped on the floor.  
  
Sakura was panting and gasping for breath, leaning on the wall for support. She noticed the lights in the other parts of the apartment were on, and she heard the click of the phone. She glanced down at Mazuni who was slouched into a ball on the floor, still as a rock.  
  
Syaoran came into the doorway and turned the light on. Sakura squinted, not used to the bright lighting.  
  
"They said they'll be here in a few minutes," Syaoran informed, eyeing the fallen person next to Sakura. Then his gaze went over to Sakura herself. She stared right back at him.  
  
"You look different," Syaoran observed quietly, more or less to himself, as he inspected Sonogi Karaku.  
  
"It might be the boobs," Sakura said casually in a low voice.  
  
"Nani?" Syaoran asked in surprise.  
  
"I said...."  
  
"I know what you said," said Syaoran. "But are you telling me...."  
  
"That I'm not a guy?" Sakura concluded. She nodded sincerely. There was no use in hiding the fact anymore. The case was solved and over with, and what more did she have to hide? Truthfully, she didn't want to hide anymore.  
  
Syaoran's eyes flickered uncontrollably for a second, and he gulped loudly. "What a surprise." Were his only words, and they came out hoarse and forced.  
  
He was hurt, and Sakura knew it. But what can I do? She asked herself. Nothing, because you just killed the boy that he loves in his mind. "Gomen," Sakura whispered, and both of them stayed in a mist of dreaded silence.  
  
Police sirens slashed through the quiet air, and Sakura could have sworn she heard the rubber of the tires screech to a halt. There was shouting and orders given. After thirty seconds, police were swarming Syaoran's household, inspecting every inch of every room.  
  
Sakura and Syaoran were both questioned separately about what had happened. Sakura answered truthfully while paramedics treated her left arm. She didn't see Syaoran after that.  
  
"Head back home, Kinomoto-san," a policeman said to her. "You need the rest. You did a good job."  
  
"Arigatou," Sakura thanked with a small smile. Suddenly all her exhaustion caught up with her.  
  
"We'll call you in the morning," he said and patted her back lightly in what he thought was comfort.  
  
"Arigatou," Sakura repeated and left Syaoran's apartment, glancing over the door she had broke earlier that night as she left. "Gomen, Syaoran," she whispered.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
The next day of school was merely a visit to Sakura. She wore her bonds and her crisp uniform for the last time. The principal was informed of Sakura's departure, and thus, informed her first teacher.  
  
"It's been a pleasure learning with all of you," Sakura said, addressing the class from the front with the teacher. "I'm moving back to Kyoto, and I wish you luck for the rest of the school year." She gave a low bow, ending her short speech. She had scanned the room as she spoke and noticed Syaoran's distant and uncaring glare. She couldn't feel more sorry for the boy, but she knew that this had to happen.  
  
Sakura gave a small smile and exited the classroom. She slid the door shut and leaned back against it, closing her eyes halfway as she did. It had finally registered in her mind that everything was all over.  
  
Sakura walked back to the apartment with Miyako, and they slowly packed their things.  
  
"I've grown quite fond of those little boys," Miyako said with a smirk as she neatly folded a blouse into her suitcase. "They were fun."  
  
"Aa.," Sakura agreed. "They were." She stuffed her clothes into her suitcase without worry about the pressed wrinkles.  
  
"You'll miss them, won't you?" Miyako asked, zippering her suitcase shut and clicking on a small lock.  
  
"I don't know," Sakura said, zipping up her own suitcase and propping it upright.  
  
"Thus the problem with going undercover; you can't grow attached to anyone," Miyako said with a grim smile.  
  
"By the way," Sakura rememberd, "what happened with Mazuni?"  
  
"From what I heard, she happened to have had a multiple personality disorder," Miyako informed. She sat down on the couch and patted the seat next to her, motioning for Sakura to sit. "Two years ago, in her old high school, Arakawa Mazuni dated the soccer team captain. Everything seemed all good and well, but it ended up that the team abused her and had raped her." Miyako took a long breath. "I suppose the memories were so horrible that it caused her disorder where she formed another personality inside of her mind, which actually takes over her consciousness whenever it wants."  
  
"So Mazuni didn't know about this?"  
  
Miyako shook her head. "She didn't know she had the disorder. Neither did her father, but he did see sudden bruises and cuts around her arms and legs, so they moved."  
  
Sakura nodded. "Where is she now?"  
  
"They're taking care of her. I'm supposing they're going to take care of the disorder with hypnosis and such," Miyako guessed.  
  
Sakura nodded again. "I'm going to say one last 'good-bye'," Sakura said with a hearty smile.  
  
"I'll pick you up with a taxi in front of the school in an hour with all of our stuff, okay?" Miyako said. "I just have a few, last minute things to take care of."  
  
"All right," Sakura agreed and headed out the door.  
  
The walk to school seemed shorter than usual, and when she got to the school, it was swarming with male students. School had obviously just ended.  
  
"Sonogi-kun!"  
  
"Aa! Hiirgizawa-san," Sakura greeted, recognizing the genki voice.  
  
"Here for a last good-bye, I suppose?" Hiiragizawa asked, approaching Sakura.  
  
Sakura nodded.  
  
"And you're here as a boy, I see!" Hiiragizawa said lightly with his usual smile.  
  
"Eh?" Sakura asked in surprise. "How did you.?"  
  
"Truthfully, I've known for quite awhile, Sonogi-kun," Hiiragizawa said in a mock whisper. "And no, no one told me! It just seemed slightly strange and obvious the first day you were here."  
  
"Obvious?" Sakura repeated in disbelief. This Eriol was one amazing kid. He was always full of surprises, isn't he?  
  
"So what's your real name?" Eriol asked. He's obviously not been talking to Tomoyo about me, Sakura thought.  
  
"It's Kinomoto Sakura," Sakura answered. "It's been nice knowing you, Eriol-kun."  
  
"Same here, Sakura-san," Eriol said, shaking her hand with a wide smile. "Li-kun's stuck up in the sakura tree over there," Eriol informed needlessly as he pointed to a tree in the midst of the school yard. Sakura nodded her thanks, and just as she took a step away from Eriol, she was pounded to the floor.  
  
"Sakura-chan!"  
  
"Konnichiwa, Tomoyo-chan," Sakura mumbled into the concrete.  
  
"I heard you were leaving!" she said, helping Sakura up to her feet.  
  
Sakura nodded.  
  
"You'll visit, won't you?" Tomoyo asked.  
  
"Of course," Sakura reassured and gave her second cousin a tight hug. "You should visit sometime too, you know."  
  
"No problem," Tomoyo said, linking arms with the nearby Eriol. "We'll see you around, Sakura-chan."  
  
Sakura nodded and turned back towards the cherry tree. She walked over to it and stood under it. Looking up, she saw a dark figure slouching on one of the thicker branches.  
  
"Syaoran?"  
  
He gave no reply.  
  
Sakura sighed. "Look," she began. "I'm sorry about all this, and I had no means of breaking your heart. All I can say is that I'm sorry; I really am." Sakura paused, and fiddled with her fingers. "I just stopped by to say 'bye'." And she turned around, knowing that a certain pair of caramel eyes watched her as she went.  
  
Miyako came early to school and she and Sakura both drove silently to the train station, watching the last bits of Tokyo fade into a mere memory.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
C-Mage: @.@' I procrastinated for too long. Definately. Um, sorry if it's really bad - I tried, honest. Review at FFN or at crystal_anjel@yahoo.com. T.Anjel: Wah! Wouldn't this be a crappy ending for a sappy S+S fic? Well, this isn't a sappy fic, and so therefore, this could actually be the sad ending of the couple. But no! I like a good happy ending, so wait another couple of decades for the epilogue, onegai! Read and review, review, review!  
  
100 reviews bash: C-Mage: We have 100 reviews and counting! [Throws confetti happily into the air.] T.Anjel: [Wears a party hat and begins to sing most horribly and dramatically.] C-Mage: Urusee! [Stuffs a ball of cloth into T.Anjel's mouth and tapes it tightly shut.] We would like to thank everyone who reviewed! T.Anjel: Rrmff rummff urrfff! Ro rmff mmff mmmff rmmff hmmff! C-Mage: She said that since she is so lazy, she is not going to write all the names down here and write a personal message for everyone. Instead, since everyone who wrote a review knows who they are, give yourselves a pat on the back and review some more!  
  
Arigatou gozaimasu! 


	10. Stop Turning your back

T.Anjel: I've been thinking...it would really be funny if we actually did wait a decade to put the   
epilogue up. Wouldn't that have been a laugh?! No? Anway! The epilogue's here! It's mostly   
S+S~ finally!   
It saddens me that this fic is coming to a close, don't you think? Maybe we could write another   
co-fic, eh, C-mage? ::nudge nudge:: ::poke poke:: ::wink wink::  
Also! I personally think that this is quite long to be called an epilogue. It could also be called a   
chapter, ne? But epilogue sounds cooler, doesn't it?   
Well! I think this was one of my more longer A.Ns! Probably because it'll be my last. ::sob::  
  
C-Mage: I can't believe it's ending...after approximately six months (including emails: "It would   
be fun to do a co-fic, wouldn't it?" "Well, if we did a co-fic, what would it be about?" etc.) of   
work on this extensive (to me) thing, it's ending. T-T So sad. This is seriously the only story   
I've (co-)written that people actually like! -.-' Anyway, sorry this took so long to get out. I got   
it a while ago, editted it on Sunday, had the computer delete it, re-saved it, moped around, then   
finally got into gear. I had to force myself not to read the book I'm borrowing to get to work on   
this.... Anyway, enjoy! ^.^'  
  
Standard Disclaimers Apply  
  
Hooded Epilougue {sob} - Stop turning your back  
  
The train station was in a state of mute busyness. Sakura and Miyako sat silently on a wooden   
bench in the train station, only accompanied by their identical suitcases in their reveries. Ranks   
of similar benches stretched out on either side, occasionally occupied, but mostly empty. Their   
train would be making their stop in twenty minutes, which gave them twenty minutes worth of   
thoughts.  
  
"Ne, Sakura-san," Miyako said quietly into the silence of their area.  
  
"Nani, Miyako-san?" Sakura replied, staring straight ahead of her in a blank sort of stare.   
  
"Did you say good-bye to Li-san?" Miyako questioned.  
  
"What do you know anything about Syaoran?" Sakura inquired curiously.  
  
Miyako turned her head to look at Sakura and gave a grim smile. "I taught at the same school   
you attended, Sakura-san," Miyako said with a sort of mischievous tone. "Even little boys like to   
gossip." She raised an eyebrow.   
  
Sakura's face flushed hotly and she stared down into her hands. "I only told him to back off   
because I knew that after the case, he may find out I'm a girl and get all depressed. And I'm   
going to have to leave to Tokyo anyway," said Sakura.  
  
"Is that all?" Miyako asked, leaning forward to get a closer look at Sakura's blushing profile.  
  
"Nani?"  
  
Miyako gave a shrug. "You tell me, Sakura-san. You tell me."  
  
Sakura covered her face in her petite hands and gave a small shrug of her own. "I don't know,   
Miyako-san," she said, her words muffling into her palms. "I was afraid of hurting him."  
  
Miyako stayed silent, urging the student to continue.  
  
Sakura turned her head to look vaguely at Miyako's face. "I knew that if he found out that I was   
a girl, then it'd be like throwing in his face the mask I was wearing and mocking him in such a   
way that...that...." Sakura shook her head. "I don't know," she whispered. "I mean...I   
apologized," she continued in her hushed whisper, "but it feels so empty."  
  
Miyako took pity for the girl who locked herself up in her own cramped box, away from people   
and away from any form of close relationships. That Li somehow and most miraculously held the   
key to opening that box, Miyako mused, watching Sakura get lost in her own thoughts. And she's   
scared to come out and away from what she locked herself in years ago as a child.   
  
"Sakura-san," Miyako said in a soothing voice.   
  
Sakura looked up, feeling confused.   
  
"I think you should make it up to Li-san," Miyako said. "You owe him at least that much." She   
spoke to Sakura as if talking to a small child.  
  
Sakura looked away as if thinking over the suggestion. "But the train...," Sakura said, turning   
back to Miyako.   
  
"Can wait," Miyako finished.  
  
"What am I supposed to do?" Sakura asked, feeling lost and puzzled.  
  
"Whatever your heart tells you," Miyako answered vaguely (and very uncharacteristically!).   
  
Sakura pouted at the answer and gave the latter comment another second of thought. "I know   
what I'll do," she said, and gave a small smile. "Can you wait here for me?"  
  
Miyako nodded. "Take all the time you need, Sakura-san."  
  
Sakura gave a confident nod and bolted out of the musty train station, feeling suddenly refreshed   
and renewed of herself. She ran without slowing or quickening her constant pace, aiming directly   
for the all boys school she had attended a just few hours ago. Please still be there, Syaoran,   
Sakura begged as she jogged across the street. Her cropped hair ruffled lightly as the wind made   
its way through the strands.   
  
Her feet pounded on the cement; every step pounding in her delicate ears. One. Two. One.   
Two. One. Two...halt! Sakura screeched to a stop at the familiar school, and, immediately, her   
gaze went over to the familiar cherry tree planted at the front yard of the school. She gave a   
relieved sigh as she made out a small-silhouetted figure of a boy through the pink petals and   
sturdy branches of the tree.   
  
Sakura jogged over to the tree and looked up to see Syaoran, who had sensed her presence and   
refused to look down. Sakura felt an automatic, upward tug at the ends of her lips at the   
stubbornness he displayed.   
  
With her own bundle of persistence, Sakura grabbed onto the lowest branch and swung herself   
over onto it. She continued the process until she was sitting on a branch at the same level of   
which Syaoran's branch was. He glared at her. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Sakura gave an innocent smile; a smile she hadn't smiled for over a decade. It gave her a good   
feeling of confidence. "I'm Kinomoto Sakura," Sakura said, plopping out a hand for Syaoran to   
shake.   
  
Syaoran eyed Sakura, then to her hand with suspicion. But he said nothing.   
  
"Hoe?" Sakura mumbled lightly, tilting her head slightly to the side, giving herself an ever more   
so innocent look. "Are you mad?"  
  
Syaoran couldn't help blush at the childish question. He looked away.   
  
Sakura set her hand down, her determined mind set on making Syaoran speak. She stood herself   
on a lower branch so that she stood eye-level with Syaoran and closed some more distance   
between them.   
  
She thrust her hand into Syaoran's face. "I'm Kinomoto Sakura," she repeated. "What's your   
name?"  
  
"You know already, baka."  
  
Sakura frowned cutely at the offense, but brushed it off as if he wasn't referring to her. "Do I?"   
she asked. "I'd like to hear it again, onegai."  
  
She raised her hand higher to that her fingers almost touched Syaoran's forehead.   
  
Syaoran gave a defeated sigh and shook Sakura's small hand in his calloused ones. "I'm Li   
Syaoran."   
  
Sakura smiled brightly. "Nice to meet you, Li-kun!" she exclaimed brightly.   
  
"What's wrong with you?" Syaoran asked curtly, raising a glaring eyebrow at the girl.   
  
Sakura shrugged. "Nothing!"   
  
Syaoran only held an expression of disbelief.   
  
Sakura smiled gently, taking a seat back on her old branch. She swung her legs carelessly and   
she stared down at her feet. "I just wanted you to get to know me again.... You know...the real   
me," Sakura said honestly, as if talking to her feet. She swallowed. "All my life, I've held   
myself in. I made no friends, and I barely let myself get close to my onii-san and my otou-san."   
Sakura smiled weakly at the old memories.  
  
"I trailed along with the police force a few years ago," she informed dully. "But even to Miyako-  
san and to Minoru-san, I wasn't more than a mere child colleague. Haha...look at that," Sakura   
said in a low voice, wiping the lone tear that overflowed out of her eye. "Tears." Sakura gave a   
weak laugh. "I haven't cried in years....  
  
"You must think I'm some crybaby, ne?" Sakura asked, turning her head up to Syaoran and   
smiling meekly, causing more tears to slide down her flushed cheeks.   
  
Syaoran shook his head sympathetically, feeling most curious about why such an innocent   
looking girl had such complicated emotions.   
  
"When I was five," Sakura began, staring off at the gentle petals of the tree behind Syaoran, "I   
came home one day to find my mom bloody and dead on the kitchen floor...." Another wave of   
tears poured out, dripping onto her hands, which were gripped in a tight ball on her lap. "That   
was the last time I remember crying," Sakura concluded.   
  
"Hoe...." Sakura whispered to herself as she felt strong arms gently wrap her in a comforting   
embrace. She looked up behind her and found that Syaoran had moved himself to sit at the base   
of her branch. He gently sat her on his lap and wrapped her in a warm hug from behind.   
  
"Cry, Sakura," he mumbled into her hair. Leaving it at that, he leaned back into the tree,   
allowing Sakura to relax in his arms and rest her head into the crook of his neck. He felt tears wet   
his neck, but he had no care for the temporary stain. He wasn't able to stay mad at Sakura, no   
matter how hard he tried. He had even thought about chasing after her an hour ago, but his pride   
had been too great.   
  
He was moved by her short yet emotional speech, and his barriers immediately went down upon   
seeing that she had had hers up for nearly her whole life and that they had broken by the mere   
likes of him. His heart reached out for her, realizing how much more vulnerable she was than   
what she seemed and let out to be. How more vulnerable she was than that Sonogi Karaku   
character he had thought he so loved.   
  
"Why don't you hate me?" Sakura asked quietly, sinking deeper into Syaoran's arms.   
  
Syaoran closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "Because I love you," he replied simply, and only   
managed to keep his cool for split second before bursting into a hot blush.  
  
Sakura smiled to herself and sunk even deeper into his arms, if possible.   
  
"Even though Sonogi Karaku was a character you played out," Syaoran said in a soft tone, "he is   
still a part of you, and you're so much more than what you think you are."  
  
"How would you know?" Sakura asked.  
  
Syaoran shrugged. "I see it in your eyes."  
  
Sakura gave out a soft chuckle. "It looks like I'm becoming more of the old me," Sakura   
commented vaguely to herself.  
  
"Nani?"   
  
"I remember my brother telling me once that my eyes didn't seem green anymore," Sakura   
explained, staring off at a sakura petal threatening to fall its branch. "I remember how hard it   
seemed for him to say that. Then I asked him....  
  
'What color does my eyes seem to be?' Sakura asked haughtily.  
  
'They have no color,' Touya replied, straining himself to look into the eyes of his imouto. 'They   
have no life,' Touya murmured to himself, obviously not intending for an eight-year-old Sakura   
to hear. But she did.   
  
"And now that I think about it," Sakura said, " I owe my otou-san and onii-san about a decade's   
worth of happiness." Sakura shook her head slowly. "I've been so selfish, and it scares me to   
think I've been like this for years. I'm so dense."  
  
Syaoran kissed the top of Sakura's head in reassurance. "You're not dense," he said. "You were   
just scared. If I found my mother dead one day, I would probably have ended up worse than   
you."  
  
"I doubt it."  
  
Syaoran sighed. "Don't you have a train to catch?" he asked regretfully, not wanting for Sakura   
to leave him.   
  
Sakura nodded and sat up straight. She turned around to face Syaoran. "You'll wait for me,   
won't you?"  
  
"I'll wait forever if I have to," Syaoran corrected, blushing furiously at his bold comment.   
  
Sakura smiled broadly and, without hesitation, landed a deep kiss on Syaoran's lips. "Promise?"  
  
"I promise."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Japanese - English Dictionary of words used in Hooded  
  
aa - ah  
aishiteru - I love you  
arigatou - thanks  
arigatou gozaimasu - thank you  
baka - idiot  
bento - lunch  
-chan - name suffix, means 'friend', used mostly by young girls  
daijoubu - are you okay, it's okay  
daijoubu desu ka - are you all right, more polite than 'daijoubu'  
domou arigatou gazimasu - thank you; higher thanks than 'arigatou gozaimasu'  
douitashimashite - you are welcome  
eeto - well, let me see, etc.  
gomen - sorry  
gomen nasai - sorry, but more sorry then 'gomen'  
gomen ne - sorry  
gya - interjection, not really Japanese  
hai - yes  
haikei - dear, used when writing letters  
hoe - Sakura's phrase for when she's surprised or upset  
honto - really  
iie - no  
imouto - younger sister  
ja - bye, used by people who know each other well  
kaijuu - monster  
kakkoi - cool  
Kami-sama - God  
kawaii - cute  
keigu - sincerely, used when writing letters  
konnichiwa - hello  
-kun - name suffix, used for young men or men who know each other well  
kuso - shit  
kyaa - eep, yipe; used as in interjection  
matte - wait  
minna - everybody  
minna-san - everybody, a bit more polite than 'minna'  
moshi moshi - hello on the telephone  
nani - what  
ne - right  
ohayo - morning  
ohayo gozaimasu - good morning  
Okaa - Mother  
Okaa-chan - Mom; uses '-chan' to show Sakura's age  
onegai - please  
Onii-san - Older Brother  
Otou-san - Father  
oyasumi nasai - good night  
sakura - cherry blossom  
-sama - name suffix, means 'god', 'goddess', etc.  
-san - name suffix, means Mr., Mrs., Ms., or Miss  
sayonara - good bye  
-sensei - name suffix, means teacher, doctor, etc.; can also be used as a singular word  
sumimasen - sorry  
Syao-kun - Sakura's nickname for Syaoran  
un - yeah  
urusee - shut up  
wai - interjection, kind of like 'wow'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
T.Anjel: ooOOOohhhh~~~ how sappy. Gives me the shivers. But hey! It's over! So lets dance   
for joy.  
  
C-Mage: Honestly, I never knew we used that many Japanese words in Hooded. Sheesh. The   
translations of the Japanese words we used was asked for by Miko, who has a hard time learning   
all of the Japanese words. ^.~ Have fun with them all! Wow, I can't believe we're almost done   
with this.... T-T So sad. Oh, in response to one of T.A.-chan's earlier comments, I wouldn't   
mind doing another co-fic. It's fun, I get to work with someone (team work can have great   
results), and I actually get to writing. Being poked and prodded by someone sure does help....  
  
T.Anjel: I think we should really thank all the reviewers who encouraged us to continue, ne C-  
Mage-chan?!   
  
C-Mage: Right! ::Whips out a list from her pocket:: Ehem! We thank DiamondInferno,   
yoshi_mage, Mary Showron, Laura, Miko, Teeny, Grace Yang, Joey, Shydevil, Kim,   
mizutenshiai, AA-chan, Tomomi, Silent Angel, TrueBlue, Pinkuser, Keisan, Skyechan,   
Trigger*Happy*Sakura, Lakshmi, Keetra, IC goddess, who is too lazy to sign in, and everyone   
else who read but didn't review!   
  
T.Anjel: Bravo, bravo! Should I dance for these wonderful people?  
  
C-Mage: -.-' No. It's okay, T.A.-chan.  
  
T.Anjel: Fine, then! I'll just randomly thank the other reviewers. ::snatches list from C-Mage::   
Thanks to~ blonde @ heart, Silver-cherry, JadeMoonWing, anime_lover, Fanny chan, Angelic   
Firefly, Whitney, Hannah, Hoshiko-chan, star, Ongaku, Cutie Blossom, Jessica, pinks, witty-sun,   
icerosemelidy82, Sujakata, Elley, Rushi Star, Lauren, Shiko, Kitty Kat, Sakura Kinomoto,   
Sapphire Midnight, Bunni, Kitty Neko, green-pixie-stick-faerie51, icerose82, noneya.... ::runs   
out of breath::  
  
C-Mage: ::takes list from T.Anjel:: Where are we?  
  
T.Anjel: ::points to a spot on the page::  
  
C-Mage:: And! Thanks to ccsfanfatic, cherryblossomsakura2111, Luna, ccs junkie, xoxangel   
blossomxox, Mimighost, Pink cherry blossom, kawaii Caleniel, qt sakura, anime rox, Wezl,   
SeiSei, Kaze, Kinomoto Angel, AV, Li Sakura, P-chan, Babydoll, swtkandiesakura, Blue Angel   
baby, dale jr.'s grl #8, Mistocean, Licybabe2002, Rosetta, cherryblossom825, mimi, fantasylover,   
angel, Kamatazi Yumi, Linh-chan, ???????, Sak-sya, sweety me, Stef, vyvy, crystal-chan, li wei,   
alex, blue toast, e t e r n a, and those who left anonymous reviews! ::runs out of breath::  
  
T.Anjel: You missed someone for sure....  
  
C-Mage: ::glares at T.Anjel::  
  
T.Anjel: ::nods:: Yes, you must thank your sister publicly. C'mon, c'mon!  
  
C-Mage: ::grins much too broadly:: Thanks, Satsuki-chan!  
  
T.Anjel: Now, isn't that better? Anyway! We apologize if we left your name out of there...if   
you even read this darn list at all. Bet y'all just skimmed right through, looking for your own   
name and feeling special, right? Yeah! That's what I would have done! And if your name   
happens to be on there twice, feel twice as special!  
  
C-Mage: We thank you for reading our fic!  
  
T.Anjel: Arigatou gozaimasu! 


End file.
